LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer has named a new leader of the city's troubled jail on Tuesday.

Lt. Col. Jerry Collins, the jail commander of the Clark County jail in Jeffersonville will take over Metro Corrections in April.

Collins, a U.S. Army veteran who previously worked for Metro Corrections for more than two decades before retiring in October 2021, replaces current director Dwayne Clark.

Dwayne Clark will retire amid ongoing investigations into a series of recent jail deaths.

Seven inmates have died under his watch in the past four months.

"Jerry has the vast experience and skillset to lead the Corrections staff," Fischer said in a statement. "He knows our community, he knows LMPD, having worked his way up through every position there, and is considered an innovative thinker with an extensive background in training. He has both the skills and the passion needed in this time of challenge."

Collins initially joined Metro Corrections as an officer in 2000 and worked his way up to major, overseeing operations and training, when he left for Clark County. 

In a statement, Collins said he was honored by the opportunity to "come home."

"I know and value the team at Metro Corrections, and I'm well aware of challenges facing jail officers and employees here and across our nation right now," he said 

Earlier this month Metro Council approved a contract for a former FBI agent to handle its independent investigation into the jail.

In February, Metro Council approved a "no confidence" vote against Clark and his executive staff. 

In an interview Tuesday, council President David James said Collins is a "sharp guy" and he was elated with the hire.

"I am overjoyed, enthusiastic and happy that Mayor Fischer has finally made changes at Metro Corrections leadership to set it in the right direction," he said.  

Daniel Johnson, president of Louisville FOP Lodge 77, was also thrilled with the hire, saying Collins "ran into roadblocks" with the current administration when he tried to make changes at the jail. 

"He likes help the officers out. When we were short-staffed he was here on the weekends and he was working a post - that speaks volumes as to what type of leader we are looking for with the problems we are facing," said Johnson.

For example, Collins wanted to implement changes in the hours officers work, to help with a better work and life balance, Johnson said. And he had ideas to improve security measures to prevent drugs from getting into the jail. 

"We really feel like he is going to be able to turn things around and make some changes relatively quickly," Johnson said. "

Johnson said there is a lot of "negative information" about the jail in the media right now and hopes this will change that. 

"I think this is going to turn things around for us," he said. 

Fischer called for an investigation following the inmate deaths, but the Council wanted an independent investigator to look into issues at the jail.

Clark is also named in a lawsuit that's expected to cost the city millions of dollars, claiming inmates were improperly detained at the jail too long after they were supposed to be released. 

The suit alleges that, since at least 2012, Clark knew that problems in the jail's records department were causing unlawful detainment but did little about it, describing a "laissez faire" attitude about the issue.

Clark oversaw the records unit and had no policy that late releases be reported or explained to him, attorneys said in court records. Clark testified that while thousands of inmates are booked into jail each year, he believed maybe 10 or fewer were people being held too long.

Before taking on the role as director following the 2019 retirement of former director Mark Bolton, Clark had worked as the jail's chief of staff since 2009. He began working at the jail in July 2004 as deputy director after working in the Illinois Department of Corrections for nearly 25 years, according to the mayor's office.

Fischer touted Clark's leadership amid the coronavirus pandemic and the reforms he put in place to "improve the conditions of the jail."

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