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ST. LOUIS — A man credited with improving conditions at the St. Louis County jail has signed on as a consultant to recommend fixes to St. Louis’ troubled downtown lockup, officials said this week.

Doug Burris, who oversaw improvement in the county after a series of inmate deaths, was hired on a $4,500 contract to review operations, emergency responses, staff morale and population trends at the City Justice Center, which sits on South Tucker Boulevard across the street from City Hall.

He will begin his review as jail Commissioner Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah returns to work after nearly three months of unexplained leave.

Burris’ arrival comes after a rough stretch for the facility.

Since Clemons-Abdullah was appointed by Mayor Tishaura O. Jones in 2021, the City Justice Center has faced riots, hostage situations and more than a dozen detainee deaths. Inmates and their family members have complained about inadequate health care services. Lawyers say they’ve struggled to get access to their clients.

Jones and Clemons-Abdullah have also repeatedly clashed with an oversight board charged with investigating complaints over access to the jail and inmates. Some board members resigned, saying city officials wouldn’t let them do their jobs and that Clemons-Abdullah needed to go.

Jones has thus far defended her jail chief, saying last year that the commissioner had her “full confidence.�

And Clemons-Abdullah defended herself at a city budget hearing earlier this year. She said operations had been taxed by a shortage of corrections officers, which she blamed in part on negative news coverage of the jail. She said the deaths were a result of drug addiction and other problems inherent to inmates in a city jail.

Meanwhile, the city has been offering $3,500 bonuses for new hires to attract applications, and touting the hiring of a new health care contractor and new city health department positions in response to concerns about care.

Activists have not been impressed.

Last month, dozens of people unfurled signs at a Board of Aldermen meeting reading “NO JAIL DEATHS� as they blasted officials for not doing more to prevent in-custody deaths.

They said 18 people have died in city jails since 2020, and they demanded officials reduce the jail population, stop lockdowns that keep detainees in their cells and stop arming corrections officers with pepper spray.

In response, Jones sent a letter Monday noting the city had already reduced jail populations by closing the Medium Security Institution, also known as the Workhouse, early in her administration. She also noted 2024 had seen the fewest deaths in the facility since 2021.

“We’ve taken this seriously from the beginning of my time in office and will continue to do so,� she wrote.

Jones’ letter also noted the city had hired Burris to review jail operations.

Burris, who had retired as federal probation chief in eastern Missouri, joined the county jail after the previous director resigned.

He was credited by county officials and the Justice Services Advisory Board, a citizen oversight panel reactivated after a series of inmate deaths, with improving staff morale, building educational and work-training programs and speeding the release of detainees accused of low-level offenses.

Jeff Smith, the former chair of the citizen’s board who worked with Burris, said he is the right man to help the city.

“I can’t think of a better person to assess the issues in the city jail and provide a roadmap for improvement,� Smith said in a text message.