Sheriff's office reports 3,300 calls countywide, plans to rent vacant jail beds to other jurisdictions

A representative of the county sheriff's office told the Port Ludlow Village Council that the county has received roughly 3,300 calls for service so far this year and has seen an increase in fraud reports targeting residents.

"So far this year, we're up to 3,300 calls for service across the county for the sheriff's office," the sheriff's office representative said. The speaker warned residents about text and phone scams impersonating courts or law enforcement and said the sheriff's office will not call to demand money: "They're all bogus." The presenter said the county will host a fraud-prevention class with Security Bank and is trying to expand outreach after a successful session at the Beach Club last year.

The speaker described the county jail as a 56-bed facility with many vacant beds since COVID and said the county is negotiating to rent bed space to other jurisdictions, including Port Angeles, Bremerton and Sequim, to bring revenue into county coffers. The representative said the county is also pursuing state grants to fund corrections and deputy positions that are currently vacant. The council heard questions about liability and contract arrangements for holding prisoners from other agencies; the sheriff's office official said legal teams review contracts and that the arrangement would not materially change the county's liability framework.

The report also included a description of an internship program that trains EMTs and firefighters and other community public-safety items presented earlier in the meeting. Council members did not take a formal vote on the jail-bed rentals during the meeting; the presentation was an informational update and staff follow-up was implied.