Kootenai County Jail population hits record high

February 20, 2018 9:26 PM

Elena Gardner

Posted: February 20, 2018 9:26 PM

Updated: May 14, 2021 2:03 PM

by Elena Gardner

Kootenai County Jail population hits record high — Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

KOOTENAI COUNTY, Idaho — The Kootenai County Jail hit a new population high with a record 471 inmates as of Saturday.

Of the 471, 94 were housed off-site at contract housing facilities due to overcrowding. The jail is currently certified to hold 327 inmates, leaving the facility with 377 inmates, which is 50 inmates over its capacity.

The jail’s numbers have steadily climbed throughout the past several years.

The average daily population for January 2018 was 418 inmates compared to 369 in January 2017 and 338 in January 2016.

The jail expansion, which is scheduled to be complete in the fall of 2018, will increase the jail’s total capacity to 442 inmates, 29 fewer than Saturday’s population.

The expansion will have a shelled-in space with future housing capabilities of an additional 108 beds. Currently, the Board of Commissioners has no plans to complete the construction of these additional beds in the shelled-in space. If the expansion were open today, Kootenai County would still have to rely on off-site contract housing to comply with Idaho Jail Standards.