County jail violation cited in state report

The Stephens County Jail failed a compliance check last November, but it was not a major enough violation that it would be hard to fix.

On Nov. 9, 2022, Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) staff conducted an unannounced annual inspection.

According to the OSDH report, the one violation was the lack of quarterly fire drills performed by the staff and inadequate markings on fire panels.

When contacted by The Comanche Times, Stephens County Sheriff Wayne McKinney was initially unaware of the violation.

“I had to call (the jail administrator) to see what it was about,” McKinney said. “I don’t get letters about everything. There are different levels and (the violation) wasn’t at a high enough level for me to get a letter.”

In an article written by Keaton Ross and Ainsley Martinez for Oklahoma Watch, it was reported 80 of the 131 county and city jails in Oklahoma had failed inspection. Stephens County was one of the 80.