KALAMAZOO, MI -- Kalamazoo County officials are working to revive an abandoned intergovernmental criminal justice council.

Kalamazoo city and county governments were among five communities nationally chosen to participate in a 2018 John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation program focused on reducing incarceration and negative effects that jail overuse has on communities. Kalamazoo County Board Chair Julie Rogers said local elected officials and law enforcement officers are building on the year-long effort to collect data and implement best practices at the jail.

Sheriff Rick Fuller said Kalamazoo County criminal justice council was started as a county initiative but shut down in 2006 after funding for a coordinator was eliminated. Chief District Court Judge Christopher Haenicke said intergovernmental cooperation is essential to share jail data and proactively prevent overcrowding before it occurs.

“We went back to our silos when the group stopped meeting,” Haenicke said.

Rogers said the county will submit an update to the MacArthur Foundation in May and apply for additional funding. The county is working on a memorandum of understanding with the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research to analyze data and track trends.

Fuller said there are 400 people in the jail, as of last week. Ninety-three are lodged for charges related to methamphetamine and 154 are incarcerated for controlled substances charges overall.

From July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017, there were 139,606 bookings at the Kalamazoo County Jail. There were 5,364 more bookings during the same dates from 2017 to 2018.

“That’s huge,” Fuller said. “The dollars we are spending on having that many more people in our jail (would) pay for two coordinators.”

Prosecutor Jeff Getting said the criminal justice council convened important conversations with diverse stakeholders outside the law enforcement community. Including other voices in the community will help the courts and jail make better decisions, he said.

It’s about trying to make sure the “system is working fairly for everyone" and identify “systemic inequities” in regard to race, gender and sexuality, Getting said.

“Coming back together is something that is not only a good idea, it’s something that is long overdue in a community that prides itself on trying to do the best for everyone,” Getting said.

Commissioner Stephanie Moore, a Democrat who has been outspoken about dismantling inequities in county government that impact people of color, said the efforts should lead to policy changes. Getting agreed.

Getting said the county should be looking at ways to reduce the number of people jailed while awaiting trial.

“This started with an idea that we needed to reduce the number of young adults in our jail population,” Getting said. “The reality is that’s a small way of looking at what’s a much larger problem.”

The reconvened council would include representatives from the city of Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County District Court and Circuit Court, Michigan Works!, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, the Sheriff’s Office and Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety and community members.