Thurston County commissioners flag need for consistent criminal-justice data across offices

Thurston County commissioners on Jan. 22 discussed efforts to align criminal-justice data reporting after commissioners and staff raised concerns that separate dashboards from the sheriff's office, prosecutor and other partners could present conflicting figures to the public.

Commissioner Grant said lessons from other agencies show case data and reporting assumptions vary widely and warned the county risks presenting mixed or misleading information if different offices publish incompatible dashboards. "If it's coming from the county ... one part of the county doesn't say one thing and one doesn't say the other," Grant said.

County Manager Leonard Hernandez and other commissioners said the county had made progress under the now-departed criminal justice program manager, Leah, who organized a data dashboard year that helped stakeholders present and compare their data. Hernandez said that work aimed to "start integrating and collaborating" so partners could present clearer, shared information.

Commissioner Mejia suggested making coordination a top priority for staff who continue the work and asked that the county manager ensure the effort persists while a replacement is hired. Hernandez cautioned, however, that county government differs from other jurisdictions because some criminal-justice offices are independently elected. He said those offices — specifically citing the sheriff and the prosecutor — have authority to present data in the manner they choose and the county cannot legally prevent them from doing so.

Commissioners and staff discussed practical steps already taken: the board funded software upgrades for the sheriff and investments in prosecution/defense systems intended in part to improve data exchange and dashboards. Grant said such investments were made in part so county and city partners could be ‘‘on similar platforms’’ and more easily compare data.

Speakers noted the Law and Justice Council has helped bring stakeholders together to standardize reporting, but attendance had dipped when the program manager was on leave. Grant and others urged resuming regular meetings and supporting staff tasked with continuing Leah's work so dashboard assumptions can be aligned before information is published.

The discussion did not result in a formal motion or vote recorded in the meeting transcript. Commissioners said they will continue to press for coordination while recognizing limits tied to independently elected officials.