Sheriff lauds jail staff after inspection

By Breyana Segura - Chief Staff Writer | March 20, 2024

“My people put in the hours and hard work”

Frio County Sheriff Mike Morse is lauding his staff for their diligence in meeting the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) requirements.
The Frio County Jail, headed by Administrator Jimmy Allen, passed a surprise state inspection on Monday, March 4.
“There is something you need to build to be successful and that is a strong team,” Allen said in an interview Monday. “We all know a leader is only as strong as the people he surrounds himself with. I have the best team. Without proper compensation, this team went beyond to reach a common goal and passed our yearly surprise state inspection from the jail commission with excellence. My people put in the hours and the hard work.”
Records filed at the sheriff’s office show that jail inspector Martin P. Arnold found no deficiencies during the March 4 inspection.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice had closed the Frio County facility on numerous occasions during the administration of Morse’s predecessor after repeated jail inspections.
Morse successfully ran for election as county sheriff in 2020 and described the law enforcement agency at the time as having no integrity and failing to operate its jail.
Within nine months of taking office as sheriff four years ago, Morse and his command staff had the jail re-opened, meeting a goal that he says was attainable due to the diligence and expertise of Chief Deputy Peter Salinas, Allen and Jail Lt. Ester Leal.
“Leal is one of the unsung heroes who deserve credit for the facility functioning,” Morse said.
“When people speak about the jail they have mentioned poor management, our turnover rate and plenty of other flaws, but they do not talk about the people working behind these doors and the amount of work that is put in to keep this place together,” Lt. Leal said. “These are the people we are grateful for every single day and I would like to congratulate every single one of them for a job well done. At the end of the day, we are just doing our job and maybe those people will really see what this is worth.”
Morse is now in the final months of his first term and has chosen not to seek a second. He is scheduled to leave office at the end of the year and will be replaced by Chief Deputy Salinas, who is unopposed in the November general election, making him the presumptive sheriff-elect.