Monroe County jail notebook: Population still up, but just two recent drug arrestees remain
Monroe County’s jail held 237 people Saturday, while its 10-day rolling average stood at about 234, down from 254 in late July. Despite heavy turnover, the population continues to exceed the ACLU’s 229-person functional capacity. Only 2 of the 7 Seminary Park arrestees on Tuesday are still in jail.
Monroe County’s jail population stood at 237 on Saturday (Sept. 26), which is one more than a week ago. The jail continues to routinely exceed the ACLU’s version of the jail’s functional capacity, which is 229.
The mid-week number pushed as high as 248, but that was still lower than the numbers in late July and early August when there was a six-day stretch over 250.
On Wednesday (Sept. 23) this past week, the city of Bloomington issued a news release about eight drug-related arrests made the day before, in Seminary Park. Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson is quoted in the release saying, “Let me be clear: criminal conduct, including drug dealing, will not be tolerated in Bloomington.”
But Tuesday’s drug arrests did not serve to swell the overall jail population figures. The day right after the arrests, the total population dropped to 233 from 248. Based on daily population reports, as of Saturday, only two of the eight arrested on Tuesday were still in jail. Two were released the same day they were booked in. The B Square has compiled the known information about the eight arrestees in a table below.
Three weeks ago, Monroe County’s GIS team rolled out a new jail data dashboard. The dashboard is updated routinely, which means Monroe County residents don’t need to wait for weekly updates from a news outlet. The dashboard breaks down the demographic profile of inmates, and provides a statistical breakdown of the types of offenses inmates are charged with.
The B Square has tracked the numbers starting on July 21, when the jail held 247 people.
Ten days into that span, the 10-day rolling average was about 254. The most recent rolling 10-day average, on Saturday (Sept. 26) was about 234.
It’s still 5 more than the 229 that the ACLU gives as the jail’s functional capacity in its federal lawsuit, which it filed in July on behalf of jail inmates.
Monroe County sheriff Ruben Marté has given a lower figure for functional capacity. His July overcrowding report started with 294 reported beds, subtracted housing that he said cannot be treated as general-population space, leaving 233 available general-housing beds. Applying the same 80% principle yields a functional capacity of 186.
The difference between the two snapshots at the start and the end of the period The B Square has tracked does not capture the turnover in the jail during that period. Of the 247 people who were there on July 21, 117 of them were still there on Sept. 19. That means 130, or more than half, of the people who were in jail at the start of the period, had left by the end.
At the same time, 120 people who arrived after July 21 were still incarcerated on Sept. 19. The 117 people who were present at both endpoints, together with those 120 later arrivals, account for the current population of 237.
That comparison still does not capture people who arrived after July 21 and then left before Sept. 26. A total of at least 656 people departed the jail during that span. It’s “at least” because some people booked into jail don’t stay in jail long enough to appear in the daily population report. An example of that are two of the arrestees in Seminary Park this past Tuesday.
Among those who departed during the time The B Square has tracked the numbers, the median length of stay was 2 days.
Over the full 61-day period, the average daily population was about 238. The highest count was 264 on July 31. The lowest was 216 on Aug. 28.
Status on 8 Arrestees in Seminary Park on Sept. 22, 2026
Based on daily jail book-in reports and daily population reports, and lookups in the state’s MyCase system, The B Square has compiled known information about the eight people arrested in Seminary Park on Sept. 22, 2026. For most of them, the arrest on Tuesday was not their first, and some were in the middle of already pending judicial proceedings.
- Possession of a controlled substance, Class A misdemeanor
- Dealing in a Schedule I, II or III controlled substance, Level 2 felony
- Possession of paraphernalia, Class C misdemeanor
- Dealing in cocaine or a narcotic, Level 2 felony
- Two probation holds
- Possession of a controlled substance, Class A misdemeanor
- Possession of paraphernalia, Class C misdemeanor
- Deal/manufacture methamphetamine, Level 4 felony
- Possession of paraphernalia, Class C misdemeanor
- Possession of a controlled substance, Class A misdemeanor
- Possession of paraphernalia, Class C misdemeanor
- Possession of methamphetamine, Level 6 felony
Custody status reflects the Monroe County jail population reports cited for the dates indicated. Charges are merely allegations unless a court finds the accused guilty.
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