Coping with criminals

Kootenai County’s $11 million-plus jail expansion marked its first year in operation Oct. 1.

The expansion added 124 beds, boosting its capacity to 451.

When the jail opened in 1987 at its current site on North Government Way, it had 98 beds. To put that in perspective, Kootenai County’s population at the time was 68,465. Today, it’s 161,505. As the county’s population grew 135%, the capacity of its jail rose 360%.

Though jarring, an analysis of the data suggests that rapid rate of growth has been reasonable given state and national norms.

Idaho has an overall incarceration rate of 734 people per 100,000 residents, which is roughly in line than the overall U.S. incarceration rate of 698, according to statistics from The Prison Policy Initiative, which tracks inmate populations.

Oklahoma, in comparison, has the highest U.S. incarceration rate, at 1,079; Massachusetts, at 324, is the lowest.

In the Northwest, Montana is nearly identical to Idaho, at 726; Oregon and Washington have much lower rates, at 582 and 480, respectively.

National data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics shows prison populations are comprised of 9.7% federal inmates. The majority — 57.3% — are incarcerated in state prisons. The remainder, 33%, are housed in local jails.

At its current population of 161,505, the data suggests Kootenai County can rationally expect 1,185 incarcerated persons. One-third of them will be housed in local jails, which works out to 391 inmates.

Kootenai County’s average county inmate population is 418.

The cost of crime

Prisons are a major industry: In 2007, the latest year for which aggregate data is available, the cost of housing a prison population of more than 2.4 million was $74 billion. That equates to $30,600 per inmate per year, or a per diem expense of $83.83.

Factoring in recent U.S. growth rates implies a current per diem expense in the neighborhood of $105.

The Kootenai County Jail’s current annual budget is $15.1 million, $36,124 per inmate per year, which equates to a per diem of $98.97. Kootenai County’s operational costs are squarely in line with the national average.

One challenge: Staffing

More inmates necessitate increased supervision. The most recent expansion required 15 new detention deputies and five control-room operators, according to statistics provided by the Sheriff’s Office,

Many of these positions remain unfilled, Jail Commander Lt. Kyle Hutchison said. As of last week, the jail was shy seven deputies. And with several jail officers in training, the shortage is more acute.

Staffing is a challenge because of low pay, sheriff’s officials said.

“I’ve been seeing letters almost weekly on my desk from deputies asking to transfer to patrol,” Hutchison said. “The direction things are headed really scares me.”

Patrol wages are $1.86 more per hour for Kootenai County deputies than for jail deputies. The gap is set to widen: Starting next year, patrol deputies will start at more than $4 an hour more than their counterparts at the jail. That hourly difference amounts to $8,320 per work year. The difference in pay can increase as officers gain seniority.

That sinks morale, said Capt. John Holecek, a 27-year veteran of the department, all spent in the detention division.

“The last few years, the divide just keeps getting wider and wider, and it’s gotten to be by far the widest I’ve seen,” Holecek said. “Every October, when it gets worse and [detention deputies] see their contemporaries get a raise and they don’t, they feel devalued a little bit.”

Being short-staffed compounds the problem: Vacancies mean other detention deputies have to put in overtime, taking personal time from the officers, Holecek said.

Ready for the future The most recent expansion, despite its cost, was not a complete project. The contractor, at the direction of the county, built two adjoining shells that eventually will house 108 inmates, 54 in each unit. The estimated cost is between $4 million and $5 million.

Jail officials have not set a deadline for completing those units. Holecek said the time frame would be dictated by demand.

“There are no interior walls, no plumbing — nothing like that,” he said. “I doubt we’ll see that happen until the need presents itself.”

That’s not now. Based on the past year’s inmate numbers, Holecek said there was no immediate need.

Since the expansion opened a year ago, the inmate population has remained relatively steady. The average count is 418 inmates, or 92.7% of capacity. Resources begin to get stretched when the inmate count exceeds 430.

“Finishing those areas will be totally driven by inmate population,” he said. “If we stay where we’re at, I don’t see those pods being finished; not until the need’s right there in our face.”