Colorado jail uses mural project to reward good behavior and honor history

A Colorado jail has developed a new way to reward good behavior and create a legacy art piece to honor the sheriff's office's history.

Clear Creek County Jail inmate William Rollins is working on something special.

Part of what makes Clear Creek County memorable is the scenery, and the sheriff's office has incorporated some of that imagery into its branding, which is now going on a wall inside the jail.

The project began as a good-behavior incentive: drawing murals on the jail walls.

"The challenge coins would be a cool idea to put on the walls of all the past sheriffs," Clear Creek County Sheriff's Sgt. Christopher Kopsch said.

The coins, representing the office's past leaders, are being brought to life by Rollins, who says his background in architecture helps guide his work.

"That's where most of this came from," Rollins said. "It's just geometric."

He describes himself as more of a ruler-and-straight-edge person, but he doesn't have those tools in jail; only what he can make.

"I use a string line to get my center and to make my circles, basically," he said.

Stroke by stroke, the emblems take shape over time; time Rollins spends reflecting on the drug charges that landed him in jail and what the experience has cost him.

"All the time. All the time. It's really hard, especially with the holiday seasons coming up," he said. "I'm a new grandfather, and I'm missing out on a lot out there, so the more efficiently I can get through this process, the better it is for my family and for me."

As a behavioral tool, Kopsch says the program is a strong incentive, and he appreciates the artwork that's forming piece by piece.

"I am very impressed," Kopsch said.

As for helping the sheriff's office — the people keeping him behind bars — Rollins says he doesn't blame them.

"I can't hold anything that I've done in my personal life- I have to be accountable for," he said. "So I would not hold any kind of a grudge against them because of that."

Rollins hopes that sketching and filling in the past will help him build a brighter future.

"I want my family, like my kids, to know that I'm trying to do better," he said.