Prison board flags court backlog as potential driver of future jail population

Speaker 1 raised concerns about a reported backlog of approximately 1,100 cases and what that number might mean for future prison population levels. "We had learned the other day, that it's approximately 1,100 cases," Speaker 1 said, adding that the board worried about what that could do "to the prison in the future population wise."

Speaker 2 responded that 1,100 may be too large an estimate for the number of cases that will actually proceed to jury selection, saying, "I think 1,100 is too large, to be honest with you," and noting case readiness, plea activity and scheduling fluctuations affect who goes to trial. Speakers noted there are 13 homicide cases in the system that require pretrial work and factored into any population projection.

Officials emphasized that daily custody numbers can change quickly because defendants accept plea offers, cases are continued for availability of experts or witnesses, and scheduled jury activity sometimes removes cases from the list. No policy action was taken at the meeting; the exchange was part of a board discussion about planning for potential intake changes.