Mecklenburg County’s newly-elected sheriff is temporarily restoring in-person visits at the county jail during Christmas week.
That’s after the previous sheriff, Irwin Carmichael, ended in-person visits, replacing them with video-visitation software run by an outside company.
In a statement, new Sheriff Garry McFadden says allowing inmates to stay connected to friends and family through in-person visits improves mental health and strengthens family and community ties.
“This simple step alone has been shown to significantly lower the chances that a person will commit another crime after they get out," McFadden said. "It also reduces the chance a person will commit an infraction inside the jail, which could adversely impact their release.”
The sheriff says he will also increase the number of free video visits and phone calls available to inmates on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.