Only Felony and Violent Offenders Being Booked Into Snohomish County Jail in Everett

In an effort to lower the population at the Snohomish County Jail in downtown Everett only offenders who have committed a felony, a violent crime or show a propensity for violence such as domestic abuse are being booked into the Snohomish County Jail.That’s the word today from Snohomish County Sheriff’s Spokesperson Shari Ireton. “We’ve got to get the population of the Snohomish County Jail down.”

Today the Sheriff’s Office released a report called an Assessment of County Jail Medical Services Available. The report was compiled following a three-day visit by Kenneth A. Ray, a technical consultant with the NIC. Ray conducted the review of the jail’s medical services under the authority of the Department of Justice. Here’s an excerpt from the summary of the report:

This document provides findings and recommendations for all of the health care components assessed.

Three common themes became vivid among most areas of care and should be of significant concern. These include: 1) inadequate staffing levels, 2) jail crowding, and 3) lack of evidence-based health care policy and procedure manual.

Health care staffing levels are simply undersized to ensure adequate assessment and care of inmate medical and mental health needs. The jail health care program (medical and mental health) is seriously understaffed for this size jail, its layout, annual admissions and average daily population. Additionally, authorized correctional staffing levels appear inadequate to ensure consistent and timely access to health care services for the same reasons.

Jail crowding continues to exist and poses significant health and personal safety risks for the staff and inmates. Crowding increases environmental stressors that can increase jail violence and medical injuries. Inmates suffering from mental illness are more difficult to manage and care for in crowded conditions. The stress of crowding can also exacerbate mental health symptoms.

Communicable disease prevention, management, and control are debilitated where housing units are overpopulated. Adding to these problems is the high level of stress experienced by jail staff and the adverse impact that stress has on their physical, emotional, social health. Relieving the crowded conditions should be considered a top priority.

You can click here to read the entire report.