Fewer people are being booked into the Kosciusko County Jail but people are staying in jail longer, Kosciusko County Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine told the county commissioners Tuesday.
The numbers were part of an overall annual report released by the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department. The report compares the arrests in 2016 from 2015.
According to the report, there were 25 fewer people booked into the jail in 2016 than in 2015.
Rovenstine said people are staying in jail longer due to new sentencing laws that keep people convicted of level 6 felonies in county jails rather than sending them to prison.
Rovenstine said the KCSD is trying to increase home detention and work release options to reduce jail stays.
Among the decreases, arrests for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated had a drop-off of about 100 arrests.
Rovenstine said the drop was significant but wasn’t sure of the reason for the drop.
“Maybe people are being more cautious about driving drunk, or maybe people are just getting away it with more,” he said.
Rovenstine said he hadn’t had time to review all the numbers and figures.
In other numbers, drug arrests in 2016 remained around the same overall, however, the county still saw a big increase in meth-related arrests,
In 2016, there were 209 meth arrests, up from 147 in 2015.
Rovenstine called it a big jump but again he hadn’t assessed the reasons.
Other drug arrests such as those involving narcotics and controlled substances were down from a year ago.
Warsaw Police Department Capt. Kip Shuter said the fluctuations in the type of drug arrests are common.
“Whenever we start cracking down on meth, they move to heroin because it is cheaper or easier to get,” Shuter said.
Another big drop was seen in arrests for check deceptions. Twenty-seven people were arrested in 2016, down from 81 in 2015.
Rovenstine attributes this drop to changing technology.
“Checks are becoming obsolete,” he said.
