INDIANAPOLIS — A new audit of the Marion County Sheriff's Office is painting a clearer picture of what is happening inside the county jail and courts.
The 45-page audit, conducted by KPMG, says the sheriff's office is facing three challenges with maintaining daily operations: a staffing shortage, changes to inmate populations and a lack of competitive pay.
At the time of the report, there were 347 full-time Marion County Sheriff's Office employees, including deputies, detention deputies and jail control officers.
The report said more staff members are taking overtime hours, and it “may pose safety risks to both staff and people in custody.”
“The staffing levels went up a little bit but not nearly what we need,” said Lt. Marvin Mullins, vice president of the collective bargaining unit for the Marion County Sheriff's Office. “We are still about 300 full-time employees short.”
Mullins believes the staffing shortages are a direct result of non-competitive pay for new hires in Marion County.
The average starting salary for a Marion County Sheriff’s Deputy is $48,327, which is 19% lower than the average for the surrounding counties:
- Hendricks: $69,769
- Hamilton: $68,099
- Johnson: $67,616
- Morgan: $56,493
- Shelby: $54,438
- Hancock: $54,000
The report also found a 3.6% increase in the average daily inmate population at the Marion County jail from 2019 to 2023. It is five times higher than the average daily inmate population for surrounding counties.
During that same period, there was a 40% increase in the number of inmates who were being held on murder or Level 1 felony charges:
- Murder (2019): 128
- Murder (2024): 179 (40% increase)
- Felony 1 (2019): 73
- Felony 1 (2024): 122 (67% increase)
“We have staff assaulted every week, inmates assaulted every week, like what do we got to do? I want to get this fixed before someone gets hurt or killed,” Mullins said.
Currently, city leaders are not increasing starting salaries for deputies because of a collective bargaining agreement that runs through the end of this year.
However, Marion County Sheriff’s Office Executive Board members are not waiting for that agreement to end to demand change.
In a letter to the Controller’s Office, the board members are asking for an immediate increase in overall pay for deputies and detention deputies.
In their request, a first-year deputy would make $69,464. That would be a 43% increase from the current salary.
They are also asking for bonuses for specialized units and changes to holiday pay.
“We can't wait much longer,” Mullins said.
13News reached out to the Marion County Sheriff's Office for comment and received this statement:
“We look forward to working earnestly with the Council, the Controller, and the administration to increase deputy pay and increase staffing, thereby creating an even safer Marion County,” said Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Captain Mitch Gore."