Who is currently booked in Whatcom County jail and what crimes are they in for?
According to a recent presentation by Whatcom County, the current average daily population is around 325. Not all of these individuals are housed in the main jail facility - about 190 are in the main jail. Of the remaining balance, 100 are in the Irongate work center; 20 are on electronic home detention; and 35 are on a District Court monitoring program.
Approximately 90% of the jail population are pre-trial, meaning they have been charged with, but not convicted of a crime. Specifically, 45% of the jail population has been charged with either a class A felony or a class B violent felony
12% of the Whatcom jail population has been charged with a gross misdemeanor, overwhelmingly Assault-4 (domestic violence) or driving under the influence (DUI arrests are automatically booked into Whatcom County Jail)
50% of the jail population have a mental illness
80% have substance use disorder
22 inmates awaiting competency restoration
Image: Cascadia Daily