JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. –Jefferson County Detention Facility released 21 inmates Sunday due to a jail population management plan that went into effect on Jan. 1. 

Although Sunday is the first day that inmates are being released, the sheriff’s office says close to 250 inmates will be released in total.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office says the jail population management plan was adopted due to a $5.5 million budget reduction. Because of the budget reduction, the sheriff’s office is closing one floor of the jail, decreasing the jail’s operational capacity from 1392 beds to 1148 beds.

The sheriff’s office says the inmates who will qualify for early release must have served a minimum of 50% of their sentence.

Those who would be excluded from early release will be inmates who have been sentenced to a statutory minimum as provided by Colorado law or have a judge-endorsed mittimus stating “Not eligible for emergency release pursuant to the provisions of Chief Judge Directive 97-8.”

Additionally, offenders will only be accepted into the jail if they have charges that require an advisement under the Victim Rights Act (VRA), third-degree felony or third-degree felony drug charges and higher, warrant arrests for jail-able offenses and court remands.

Sheriff Jeff Shrader says that the early release “undermines the authority of the judges and the authority of the court. Releasing inmates early, before they have completed their full sentence, is also not the message we want to send to criminals. Unfortunately, it is the action we have to take to meet the budgetary constraints we are currently faced with, and to maintain a safe environment for those who are incarcerated and our employees who work in the jail.”