31% of Whatcom County jail population identified with serious mental illness, county committee told

Hannah Sloan, clinical program director for Lifeline Connections, told Whatcom County joint legal and behavioral health committees in June that “as of right now, of the individuals currently in custody, 31 percent have a known serious mental illness.”

The data Sloan presented is part of the county’s monthly internal tracking of people in custody with serious mental illness (SMI) and options for diversion. Sloan said 80 percent of those with SMI have at least one case open in superior court and that 42 percent have cases in multiple courts or jurisdictions. “We have about 43 percent who are booked in for at least 1 violent crime,” Sloan said, and “42 percent have mainly property crimes or low level assault crimes.”

The numbers matter because people identified with SMI also stay longer in custody: Sloan presented an 18-month average showing individuals with SMI spend 79 days in jail versus about 37 days for people without SMI.

Committee members pressed for clarifications and context. Sloan said roughly 65 percent of the SMI population in custody is receiving medications, and about 64 percent have had competency evaluations. She said only a “few people” are eligible for mental health court or the mental health sentencing alternative, limiting formal diversion options. Sloan and others on the call identified three main barriers to expanding diversion: statutory and procedural eligibility limits, court and program capacity, and the county’s housing shortage, which “is probably the main barrier for individuals being able to participate in diversion options,” Sloan said.

Committee members and staff discussed existing pathways and bottlenecks. Western State and several inpatient hospitals remain the primary sites for competency restoration; Sloan said outpatient restoration is “not happening in an outpatient setting” in Whatcom County. A county participant later reported there are currently about 9 to 10 people awaiting restoration and another 4 to 5 awaiting evaluations.

Members also raised Medicaid continuity for people on electronic home detention. County staff explained that when incarceration status is reported through the jail reporting system (JBRS) to the Health Care Authority, Medicaid coverage can be suspended; if that suspension is not corrected within 30 days the individual’s coverage can be revoked. Staff said the problem has become less frequent but still creates a barrier for people trying to access outpatient care after release.

Sloan said the county’s internal data is not yet published but offered to share it on request. She did not present a formal action or motion; committee members requested follow-up details on eligibility hurdles and program capacity.