As directed by Resolution 2020-43, a work group of senior staff appointed by the Executive, Prosecuting Attorney, and Sheriff conducted an extensive review of numerous Pierce County criminal justice policies and practices.

The review focuses on policies and practices that, according to multiple local and national organizations, result in the inequitable treatment of African Americans and all people of color.

The resultant report was presented to the Pierce County Council on September 16, 2020. Annual monitoring of key measures from the report are available below.

Crime rates account for differences in population size across geographies and time. This provides a more accurate picture of the prevalence of crime in an area than a count of crimes reported. Property crime rates, reported per 1,000 residents, in Pierce County generally declined from 2014 to 2019. However, rates have increased consistently since then. From 2019 to 2022, the property crime rate in the service area of the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department increased 22.5%. The Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area includes Unincorporated Pierce County and the cities of Edgewood and University Place, which contract with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department for law enforcement services. The overall property crime rate increase for all of Pierce County increased 29.4%.

In 2022, the property crime rate in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area was 34.9 per 1,000 residents, which is lower than the County's rate of 68.7 per 1,000 residents. The violent crime rate for the Sheriff's service area stood at 9.6 per 1,000 residents, compared to the County's rate of 16.4 per 1,000 residents. These statistics reflect an overall lower rate of property and violent crimes in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area compared to the County. However, it is important to note that unreported crimes, whether to property or violent, are not reflected. 

From 2014 to 2022, most types of property and violent crimes were reported at rates less than 20 per 1,000 residents annually in Pierce County. In the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area, rates were generally lower, at less than 10 crimes reported per 1,000 residents. 

Across both the County and the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area, theft is the most common crime reported across all years. In 2022, there were 43.7 thefts reported per 1,000 residents in Pierce County and 21.6 thefts reported per 1,000 residents in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area. These patterns reflect several possible influences, including increased crime experienced following 2019 and an increase in vacant deputy sheriff positions, which may result in fewer arrests.

When comparing crime rates by type from 2019 to 2022, murder - while still reported below an annual rate of 2 per 1,000 residents - saw the sharpest increase in both Pierce County and the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area, with increases of 127.2% and 81.0%, respectively.  

Theft increased by 30.9% in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area, and by 39.9% in Pierce County from 2019 to 2022.

In 2023, there were 11,668 arrests in Pierce County. 2,967, 25.4%, of these were made in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area, which includes unincorporated Pierce County, Edgewood, and University Place. Compared to 2021, the number of arrests in Pierce County in 2023 increased by 5.8%.

Each arrest is counted separately, meaning that an individual arrested more than once within a single year would be counted for each arrest in that year. 

In 2023, there were 6,256 arrests of White individuals in Pierce County, with 1,539 of these arrests taking place in the Pierce County Sheriff's Department Service Area. This accounts for 53.6% of the total arrests in the County, while White residents make up 62.1% of the County's population.

During the same year, Black or African American individuals, who make up 8.2% of the County's population, were arrested 2,549 times, representing 24.9% of arrests. Individuals who are Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander also experienced higher rates of arrest compared their population within Pierce County.

The Pierce County Sheriff's Department and other agencies, such as the Tacoma Police Department, Bonney Lake Police Department, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, use the Pierce County Jail to book individuals arrested.

Overall bookings rose from 2014 to 2018, fell from 2019 to 2021, then increased in 2022 and 2023. Notably, bookings from the Pierce County Sheriff's Department decreased between 2016 and 2019, while bookings from other agencies rose. Trends for Pierce County Sheriff's Department compared to other agencies realign from 2019 onward. During this time, booking counts decreased from 2019 through 2021 and increased in 2022 and 2023. Decreased bookings in 2020 and 2021 are likely due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, the number of bookings from the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, 4,085, represented 44.6% of all bookings to the Pierce County Jail. 

In 2023, White individuals were booked into the Pierce County Jail 4,234 times: 2,235 times by the Pierce County Sheriff's Department and 1,999 times by other agencies. This represents 46.3% of all bookings, while White residents represent 62.1% of the County.

During the same year, Black or African American individuals, who make up 8.2% of the County's residents, were booked 2,205 times. This represents 24.1% of all bookings. 

In 2023, there were 342.7 bookings per 10,000 residents of Pierce County identifying as Black or African American, 269.5 bookings per 10,000 residents of Pierce County identifying as Native American or Alaska Native, and 87.2 bookings per 10,000 residents identifying as Asian or Pacific Islander. In comparison, individuals identifying as White or Hispanic or Latino of any race(s) experienced bookings at lower rates of 72.9 and 80.1 per 10,000 residents, respectively. Since 2014, higher booking rates per 10,000 have generally been observed for Native American or Alaska Native and Black or African American populations. 

Following bookings, the deputy prosecutor may decide not to file formal charges due to insufficient evidence to charge the suspect or prove the charge in court, a request for more information before making a decision, or a referral of the case to another court, such as municipal courts.

In 2023, 14.4% of bookings had no charges filed. This is an increase of 12.5% from 2022, though it remains lower than the percentage of bookings with no charges filed in 2020, 17.4%, or 2021, 15.3%. 

Since 2014, individuals for whom race and ethnicity are unknown have had the highest percentage, 11.5%—29.1%, of bookings where no charges are filed compared to other groups. In 2023, individuals who are Asian or Pacific Islander had the lowest percentage, 12.1%.

During arraignment, defendants are informed of their rights in a criminal case and are presented with the charges against them for the first time. The judge may also determine if there is probable cause and decide on bail and other conditions of release during the arraignment hearing. From 2014 to 2023, most individuals with charges filed were not released following their arraignment. In 2023, 62.7% of bookings did not lead to release following arraignment.

In general, for those with charges filed and released from 2015 through 2023, more individuals were released on bail rather than after booking and filing paperwork. Since 2015, the percentage of people who are booked into the Pierce County jail annually and are not released following arraignment has ranged from 58.6% to 67.5%.

While 15.5% of people were released after booking and filing paperwork in 2022, 24.4% were released in this way in 2023 – the highest rate since 2015. These are releases on personal recognizance or special identification procedure (PR/SIP) for low-level, misdemeanor crimes. Sometimes called "Book and Release", the jail identifies, fingerprints, checks for warrants, and sets a court date before release. 

In 2023, the average daily population at Pierce County Jail was 816, an increase from the previous three years. The lowest point was in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, with an average daily population of 598.

Pretrial is a period after an individual (defendant) has been arrested but before they have been convicted of a crime. Pierce County's Clerk of the Superior Court Pretrial Services is responsible for monitoring certain conditions imposed by the court for those released from custody.

While the jail population has increased slowly following the COVID-19 pandemic, pretrial service caseloads have increased sharply, from a daily caseload of 311 in 2021 to 1,266 in 2023. 

A printable version of the original 2020 report is available here.

The datasets used for analysis in this page can be found at the following locations: 

Finance Department