FIRST ON FOX 35: Overcrowding at jail forces early release for some

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - The Brevard County Jail is so overcrowded, authorities say, that they are having to release some inmates. 

Prosecutors have been rushing to offer plea deals to those who have not yet gone on trial -- the idea being that if you get rid of their cases, you get them out of the jail and free up their beds for more serious offenders. 

Thirty two have agreed to such plea deals, and they will likely be let out on Friday morning if a judge approves.

"If they determine that there are people that need to be released from jail, of course we will accommodate that," said Tod Goodyear, spokesman for the Brevard County Sheriff's Office.  

"The overall problem is there is not enough space, and there's too many people in there it's that simple."

Attorney Harley Gutin has been practicing criminal law for 20 years, and he said the jail is overcrowded to begin with, because it's hard to get plea deals heard by judges, and there isn't enough room to hold violent offenders and drug users.

"The overall problem is there is not enough space, and there's too many people in there it's that simple," Gutin said. "There's some people who are just addicts, and to put them on probation and say, 'Oh you used, and I'm sticking you back in jail'  is bizarre, because we want to put really bad people in there."

All of the defendants who will likely get out of jail have been accused of misdemeanor crimes, but they will not include anyone charged with domestic violence, battery, or DUI.