Sharon council's decision to leave the Shenango Valley Regional Lockup will affect the lockup's finances, but it's too soon to tell what that effect will be.

James DeCapua, executive director of the Mercer County Regional Council of Governments, the agency that operates the lockup, said that monetarily, things are "still up in the air."

"I'm not going to say that Sharon's withdrawal is not going to financially have an impact, because it will," DeCapua said Friday, a day after council voted to leave the lockup. DeCapua said he's not anticipating raising the hourly rate to house prisoners because of Sharon's withdrawal.

DeCapua said Sharon spent $34,804 on lockup costs in 2002. The $41,000 figure given at Thursday's council meeting was before a rebate to the city, he said.

Last year, Sharon had prisoners lodged in the lockup at the Farrell City Building for 4,350 hours, DeCapua said. He said that averages about $8 an hour to lodge a prisoner.

On average, Sharon spends $31,000 a year on the lockup, DeCapua said.

"I can't see how Sharon can feel that they can operate their own lockup at $25,000. I mean if they had 4,350 hours you've got to pay somebody to watch them," DeCapua said. "That alone plus the ... well there's a lot going into utilities, feeding, insurance for the inmates, but if they feel they can do it, I guess it's their prerogative to go that route."

Said Mayor David O. Ryan, "We had a lockup in the city for probably 85 years except for the last seven or eight years. I think we can adequately take care of prisoners. We have the expertise and knowledge to do so."

Video arraignment is something that's available through the regional lockup that won't be available in Sharon, DeCapua said. Video arraignment eliminates the expense and time of taking prisoners to various district justice offices, he said.

"That's something I hope the Sharon Police Department thought about," DeCapua said.

Ryan said the city has thought about video arraignments. He said police will wait to see if the system works and then consider it in the future.

Sharon uses the regional lockup more than any other municipality, but it operated a year or two before Sharon joined, DeCapua said. "There's no reason why it can't be a viable operation without Sharon," he said.