The daily population at Summit County jail is shrinking.
Four years ago, an inmate census showed the jail was 68% full most days. The jail can fit 95 inmates. Today, county commissioner Tamara Pogue says the jail is 21% full on average.
This comes as the local crime rate has grown slightly, according to arrest logs from Summit County Sheriff’s Office. Through June this year deputies have cited or arrested 3% more people than last year.
Pogue believes a two-year-old program is responsible for Summit’s shrinking jail population: pretrial services.
“When we think about how much money pretrial has saved taxpayers in terms of reducing our census, it makes a huge difference,” Pogue said at the county commissioner meeting July 16. “I think that is (something) the public doesn’t understand.”
Pretrial services help inmates secure bond, especially nonviolent and first-time offenders.
It was introduced in 2022.