Activist says front lobby at OK County Jail not secure

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — As Oklahoma County looks ahead to construction for a new detention center, there's fresh concern over whether or not the current one is fully secure.

All eyes are on the front lobby of the jail— where Christopher Johnston noted that both a working metal detector and physically armed security were not present when he went in person on Wednesday,

Cell phone video provided to the station by Johnston shows the local activist recording as he walks freely through the front door:

"Just walked through a metal detector that did not go off. I've got my keys."

Johnston showed the Board of County Commissioners the video during their regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday:

"Do something ... search the employees, [because] they're still getting in... the drugs are still coming in."

"That's the front entrance of a maximum security facility... I find it hard that we can't somehow get a guard in a maximum security facility and a metal detector in the front door," he said.

"I was just pointing out the hypocrisy of what it is," he added.

In separate emails to the station, a representative for the Department of Corrections said the front lobby area is a public space that does not require metal detectors:

The front lobby area is designated a public space. The metal detector has not been utilized in several years. It was put in by the sheriff many years ago, when deputies worked up at the front. We have plans to take it out, but it is bolted to the floor. The front door is locked during off hours but is opened remotely by the front desk staff. The kiosks for family members to put money on a detainee’s books is just inside the first set of doors.

Mark Opgrande | Director Of Communications at Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority

In a follow up message to the station, Opgrande clarified that the front lobby is not considered a secure location by the facility:

The front lobby is not a secure location. The secure side of the facility is behind the front desk area, which is secured by locking doors.  Visitors come through the front door and are welcome in the lobby during business hours. After hours, visitors are let in if they need to inquire about a detainee, post bond, need to speak with staff for some reason have business with the OCDC such as a vendor.

Mark Opgrande | Director Of Communications at Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority

"You can't catch a flight without having to go through security...you have to go through security to go to school, so I don't buy that at all," Johnston countered.

"It's a public space, well so is the courthouse and we have to pass through metal detectors and be body searched," said Johnston in response.

A facility standards revision from September outlines the process for "identifying and recording" the entry and exits of volunteers and other non employees based on "specific security needs".

"In three years we lost 44 people. By 2027, we will have surpassed the amount of people lost in 19 years under the jail trust," Johnston added.

"You tell me why we need a working metal detector and why we need basic safety procedures," he continued.