County analysis finds Black and Indigenous people overrepresented in Whatcom County jail, commission says

LEDE: A preliminary data analysis presented Nov. 20 to the Justice Project Oversight and Planning Committee found that Black and Indigenous residents are substantially overrepresented in Whatcom County’s jail population in 2023 and that the disparity worsened in 2024, presenters said.

The findings were delivered by Leo Angiano, identified in the meeting as a data analyst for the commission, who used American Community Survey population figures and the Whatcom County Sheriff’s jail-use annual report to compare county demographics with the jail population.

NUT GRAF: The analysis — described as preliminary and limited by gaps in local data — highlighted sharp disproportionality by race and called for routine tracking of full racial and ethnic backgrounds, further study of diversion programs and public reporting so policy decisions can be evidence-based. Committee members pressed for follow-up on length-of-stay, bail and repeat bookings to understand how different charges and procedures affect who remains in custody.

WHAT THE ANALYSIS FOUND: Angiano summarized the county and jail figures for 2023 and 2024 and calculated a disparity index (percent of jail population divided by percent of county population). He reported that although white residents make up the largest share of county and jail populations, Black and Indigenous people are “overrepresented” relative to their share of the county population. The presenter said that the disparity index rose between 2023 and 2024.

DATA LIMITATIONS: Angiano and Miriam (who introduced the analysis) repeatedly told the committee the work relied on publicly available ACS data and the sheriff’s reports and that key fields were missing or inconsistent. The presenters said they could not reliably identify Latino counts in the sheriff data and could not tell from the available files whether repeated bookings reflected the same individuals. Angiano said further analysis and additional datasets are needed.

COMMITTEE RESPONSE: Members urged caution in interpreting offense tallies and asked for follow-up on operational questions. Tasha, identified in the meeting as “a police detective for the London Police Department,” noted timing and booking rules can affect who appears in jail snapshots and asked whether the report counted arrests, bookings or daily populations. Others called for data on length of stay and bail amounts, arguing these measures can produce disparate outcomes even when charges look similar on paper.

CONTEXT AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Miriam emphasized that “specific communities of color being overrepresented in the jail is not an indication that they commit more crime. It is entirely an indication of policing,” and urged the committee to surface that framing publicly. Presenters recommended that the county: (1) track and publish complete racial/ethnic demographic fields in jail reports; (2) evaluate locally adopted diversion programs (LEAD, ART, GRACE and therapeutic courts) for effectiveness; and (3) study whether system changes (for example, court scheduling and warm handoffs at release) could reduce late-night releases and improve linkages to housing and services.

QUOTES: “Specific communities of color being overrepresented in the jail is not an indication that they commit more crime. It is entirely an indication of policing,” Miriam said. Leo Angiano summarized limitations: the available sheriff’s reports produce monthly or daily population snapshots but do not reliably link multiple bookings to the same individual, he said.

WHAT’S NEXT: Angiano said a fuller written report and more robust public presentation will be produced, and committee members asked staff to return with disaggregated length-of-stay data, bail information and cross-referencing between charges and demographic markers. The commission and county staff logged follow-up requests to obtain additional records and to search for missing Latino demographic fields.

ENDING: Committee members praised the analysis as a useful first step and urged that future presentations include more individual-level tracking and evaluation of diversion programs. The committee scheduled follow-up conversations as part of its action planning for 2026.