NC judge bans talks over smaller jail than planned

YADKINVILLE, N.C. -- A North Carolina judge has issued an order preventing a committee in Yadkin County from meeting to discuss overhauling plans for a jail to replace a closed lockup.

The Winston-Salem Journal reported Friday that Superior Court Judge John Craig ordered a committee including the county commissioners to cancel any meetings to discuss a smaller jail.
Craig says he plans to demand an explanation of why a new $8 million jail hasn't been built almost three years after he ordered it.

University of North Carolina School of Government professor Michael Crowell says judges rarely ban officials from meeting, though they might move to prevent a board from taking action.

Yadkin County's sheriff and others have said in recent years that the old jail is too decrepit to house inmates safely.

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