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(The Center Square) – King County Councilmembers Rod Dembowski and Jeanne Kohl-Welles have introduced a motion that would request King County Executive Dow Constantine’s office to evaluate programs tasked to reduce the average daily population in King County’s jail system.
The motion would also seek recommendations from the executive’s office for funding options.
King County operates three detention facilities, which are experiencing capacity issues that coincide with a staffing shortage. According to Constantine, the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention had 300 inmates more inmates than was budgeted for as well as over 120 vacancies in budgeted corrections officer positions earlier this year.
The adopted King County 2023-2024 budget included an increase in resources to support a population of 1,600 inmates throughout the biennium.
“What we’re asking for is a review of what has been most successful, most impactful and what the cost might be so that we really can determine how we can work to sustainably decrease our reliance on incarceration,” Kohl-Welles said in a Law, Justice, Health and Human Services Committee meeting on May 2.
Last month, the King County Council approved Constantine’s proposal to contract with a regional detention facility in Des Moines, WA called South Correctional Entity. Under the proposal, King County would contract with the facility through Dec. 31, 2024, to accept South King County bookings on King County’s behalf. The contract costs an estimated $3.5 million over the next two years.
The councilmembers also requests that the executive’s office communicate with King County criminal justice partners. These entities may include the King County Superior Court, Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Department of Public Defense, or community service providers.
Fellow King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci added that the county needs “some kind of refresh” in establishing collaborations systemwide to address the issues facing the King County jails.
“The jails can’t solve diversion or jail population by themselves,” Balducci said. “All of the system players impact each other.”
Mina Hashemi, the director of council relations at the King County Executive’s Office, said the motion is consistent with the work that is already in motion within the office and welcomes future conversations.
The motion was passed out of the Law, Justice, Health and Human Services Committee meeting by a vote of 5-1 with Councilmember Reagan Dunn voting against the motion. It will now be presented to the full King County Council meeting on May 16.
This article First appeared in the center square
