Cuyahoga County is preparing for the Republican National Convention by setting aside beds in the county jail and directing the courts to clear their dockets for arrests made during the late July event, Cleveland.com reported Friday.
The county, which Cleveland.com reports will receive up to $250,000 from the city of Cleveland for housing arrestees, has requested that 200 beds be reserved for “fresh arrests” made during the convention.
“In order to accommodate this arrangement, the County will transfer 200 of its own inmates from downtown to Bedford heights [sic] jail and lease for the week,” the county’s department of public works wrote in a proposal submitted to the county’s Board of Control.
Both Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court and Cleveland Municipal Court will also be ordered to keep their dockets clear to make room for the arraignments of those charged during the convention.
The likelihood of violence breaking out on the banks of the Cuyohoga has declined now that Donald Trump has clinched the number of delegates needed to secure the nomination and the possibility of a contested convention has all but evaporated. Still, the city is taking no chances.
Cleveland has asked the board for funding for 100 body cameras, 2,000 riot control suits with collapsible batons, chemical detection controllers, and supplies for a “mass casualty incident trailer.”
