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Sawyer County jail reports 59 average daily population; members press for clearer employment statistics
Summary
April jail report cited an average daily population of 59 with a 78% unemployment rate at booking; CJCC members asked for differentiated metrics and clarification on policies for medications and work release.
A jail official reported to the Sawyer County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council on May 14 that the April average daily population was 59 inmates — 15 females and 44 males — with an unemployment rate of 78% at booking.
The report broke down detention categories as: average probation incarceration 18, pre‑sentence incarceration 28, and sentenced incarceration 13. The report noted four inmates on electronic monitoring and that there were 54 inmates on the day the population report was generated.
Council members asked for clarity about the 78% figure after the presenter said that is measured at booking and not necessarily the same as the unemployment rate for people physically present in the jail on any given day. One CJCC member asked whether the reported unemployment rate conflates people who are ineligible for work release (for example those held on probation sanctions or pre‑sentence holds) with those eligible; the presenter confirmed the numbers reflect booking‑time status and offered to pursue a separate current‑population employment statistic.
Council members discussed the local work release/Huber situation and electronic monitoring: the presenter said the county currently uses electronic monitoring in lieu of an active Huber work‑release program and that eligibility requires court authorization and other administrative steps.
Members also asked about continuity of prescribed medications. The presenter said: "All medications have to go through our jail physician" and that if medications and labeling are correct most prescriptions are continued; if labels are missing or counts are off the physician may not continue them.
The council requested follow‑up data to separate the booking‑time unemployment number from the in‑custody employment eligibility and to provide more precise counts for those eligible for work release or Huber status.
