Utah lawmakers Wednesday got a glimpse at statewide data that showed how many people have died in state jails, though the new information wasn’t without its limitations.
Local officials reported that 71 people have died in county jails since 2013, according to a report compiled by Utah’s Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice (CCJJ).
It’s the first time a state agency has tallied numbers from individual counties to create a single report detailing how many people have died while incarcerated — the result of legislation a year ago that called for all counties to report data and policies after a spike in deaths in county jails.