Serving tough time with teddy bears

I really like the way this sheriff thinks:

BUFFALO, Mo. (AP) – Prisoners returning to a jail damaged in a failed breakout attempt will find a radically new decor – pink with blue teddy bear accents.

Dallas County Sheriff Mike Rackley said he decided on the color scheme as part of extensive repairs necessary after inmates set a fire and vandalized the interior on Oct. 8.

“Basically, if they are going to act like children and commit a childish act, then we’ll make a childish atmosphere,” he said. “And it’s a calming thing – Teddy bears are soothing. So we made it like a daycare and that’s kind of like what it is, a day care for adults who can’t control their behavior in public.”

“How do you feel tough in a pink atmosphere?” he asked.

Since the jail violence, most of the southwest Missouri county’s 30-plus prisoners have been in neighboring jails awaiting completion of the repairs.

Eight inmates already have been returned to the jail, but they are confined to their cells 23 hours a day because of the construction and are “a little testy” because of the restrictions.

“They haven’t said much about the color scheme,” Rackley said.