(The Center Square) – Staffing levels within the King County jail system have improved enough to allow the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention to lift all remaining misdemeanor booking restrictions.

In November, the King County jail resumed booking low-level and non-violent crime offenders as part of an agreement with the city of Seattle after a four-year halt. The booking restrictions were initially authorized in order to lower the average daily population and help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

As staffing levels improved in 2024, King County was able to permanently lift misdemeanor booking restrictions for the entire countywide transit system on May 1, and for downtown Seattle in late-July.

The remaining misdemeanor booking restrictions for all partner law enforcement agencies will be lifted on Feb. 1.

According to the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention, it was able to hire more corrections officers in the last two years thanks to more recruitment efforts. The department was able to add 77 corrections officers in 2023 and 102 in 2024.

There were 57 vacancies out of 503 total corrections officer positions as of the week of Jan. 20. The department notes that is a vacancy reduction of nearly half compared to a year ago.

“I want to thank our jail staff, who have worked tirelessly to safeguard the public and those in our care,” King County Executive Dow Constantine said in a statement. “I’m delighted we have reached this milestone and can lift all remaining misdemeanor booking restrictions.”

The Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention touts successful recruitment efforts for the boost in hires, including hiring bonuses between $12,000 and $25,000, and recent state legislation to increase training slots for corrections officers.

During the four years when booking restrictions were in place, felonies were never restricted, as well as misdemeanors that were deemed to pose an imminent public safety risk. This included violations such as assaults, weapons charges, and sex crimes.

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