In their written report to Warren County Circuit Judge Frank Vollor, grand jurors said again Thursday that a new jail is needed “as soon as possible.” The October panel becomes the seventh consecutive grand jury to address this as the No. 1 issue.

The jury, which completed its work of examining criminal cases and inspecting local government operations Thursday, toured the jail with the Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace. Pace has described the facility, a portion of which dates to 1907, as “outdated,” “grossly undersized” and “not large enough to meet the needs of the community.” Newer portions were completed in 1979 and as recently as a few years ago.

Supervisors have also identified a jail as a priority likely resulting from a comprehensive study of all county building needs projected at least 20 years into the future. Results of that study have been trickling in, and in August Pace, Undersheriff Jeff Riggs, District 1 Supervisor David McDonald and County Administrator John Smith spent four days at a Department of Justice conference in Colorado in August. At the conference, how to assess jail needs and guide designs were the topics.

Pace said a county jail in Mississippi must house three kinds of inmates: felons charged and awaiting trial, people convicted of misdemeanors and state inmates working in trusty programs.

“We can barely perform one of these functions,” Pace said.

According to Pace, the jail, located at Grove and Cherry streets, is continually filled to its capacity of 118 with pretrial detainees only. This forces authorities, including the City of Vicksburg, which pays a per diem rate to house detainees, to ferry those arrested on misdemeanor charges to and from jails in other counties. Mayor Laurence Leyens has pegged that cost at about $400,000 annually.

As of Friday, records indicated 39 people convicted of misdemeanors in Vicksburg’s Municipal Court were being housed in the Issaquena County Jail instead of the Warren County Jail.

A location or timetable for a new jail here has not been determined. However, according to the Department of Justice, the average planning and construction time for a new jail is 44 to 68 months once initial actions are taken. Smith said no action toward a new facility has been taken since the conference, but expects the issue to become a focal point once more elections have concluded.

Six other recommendations were made by the grand jury:

* The Warren County prosecutor should be a full-time position with an assistant and clerical support.

* The Warren County Courthouse needs to continue to be a focus of maintenance and needs to be renovated to modern standards. The elevators also need updating.

* More investigators are needed for the Vicksburg Police Department, the Warren County Sheriff’s Department and Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.

* Both county and the city should take an interest in repairs needed at the Old Court House Museum.

* The citizens of Warren County should contact and urge all local legislators to become more intimately involved with the juvenile justice system issues and implement and support substantial reform of the juvenile justice system as a long-term solution toward reducing crime in Warren County.

* More practical and detailed orientation for grand juries concerning duties and obligations should be presented immediately preceding the presentation of cases.

Vollor empaneled the jury, drawn from voter rolls, on Monday. He dismissed the panel after receiving its written report.