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Sheriff: inmate population rising, county has begun shipping inmates out of county
Summary
Sedgwick County sheriff told commissioners the jail population has climbed and the county started sending inmates to other counties; staff cited bed congestion, higher stays for violent and child‑sex cases, backlog at state hospitals, and rising per‑diem costs for out‑of‑county housing.
Sheriff (name not stated on the record) told commissioners that Sedgwick County operates 1,407 jail beds and that the inmate count had risen from 1,328 on July 24 to about 1,350 on the day of the briefing. "We have a total of 1,407 beds," the sheriff said, then outlined the male/female breakdown and specialty housing for medical and mental health needs.
The sheriff and staff attributed the increase to a higher number of violent cases and longer stays for people charged with homicide and child‑sex offenses, many of whom remain jailed awaiting trial, competency evaluations or placement at state facilities. He reported long waits for competency restoration, noting one average wait figure of 196 days. "We're up to 38 inmates now [awaiting Larned], 1 of which has been here for almost a year," the sheriff said.
Because booking areas can become overwhelmed after peak arrest periods, the sheriff said the county has begun shipping inmates to other facilities and currently has 64 individuals housed out of county. "We started 2 weeks ago, and starting to ship inmates out of county. So far right now, we have 64 out of county," he said. He described per‑diem costs that previously averaged about $35/day and now run from $45 to $110 depending on location and services, with many placements roughly $60/day; transportation and oversight add to the expense.
The sheriff said the county's current out‑of‑county housing appropriation (a $2,000,000 line item) has not been exhausted this year but warned that sustained population growth and rising placement costs could require budget action next year. Commissioners pressed for data on courtesy placements and on how many out‑of‑county probationers committed new crimes while in Sedgwick County; staff agreed to follow up with requested data.
