2023 Revised Code of Washington › Title 70 - Public Health and Safety › Chapter 70.48 - City and County Jails Act. › 70.48.100 - Jail register, open to the public—Records confidential—Exception.

RCW 70.48.100
Jail register, open to the public—Records confidential—Exception.
(1) A department of corrections or chief law enforcement officer responsible for the operation of a jail shall maintain a jail register, open to the public, into which shall be entered in a timely basis:
(a) The name of each person confined in the jail with the hour, date and cause of the confinement; and
(b) The hour, date and manner of each person's discharge.
(2) Except as provided in subsections (3) and (4) of this section, the records of a person confined in jail shall be held in confidence and shall be made available only to criminal justice agencies as defined in RCW 43.43.705; or
(a) For use in inspections made pursuant to *RCW 70.48.070;
(b) In jail certification proceedings;
(c) For use in court proceedings upon the written order of the court in which the proceedings are conducted;
(d) To the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs;
(e) To the Washington institute for public policy, research and data analysis division of the department of social and health services, higher education institutions of Washington state, Washington state health care authority, state auditor's office, caseload forecast council, office of financial management, or the successor entities of these organizations, for the purpose of research in the public interest. Data disclosed for research purposes must comply with relevant state and federal statutes;
(f) To federal, state, or local agencies to determine eligibility for services such as medical, mental health, chemical dependency treatment, or veterans' services, and to allow for the provision of treatment to inmates during their stay or after release. Records disclosed for eligibility determination or treatment services must be held in confidence by the receiving agency, and the receiving agency must comply with all relevant state and federal statutes regarding the privacy of the disclosed records; or
(g) Upon the written permission of the person.
(3) The records of a person confined in jail may be made available to a managed health care system, including managed care organizations and behavioral health administrative services organizations as defined in RCW 71.24.025, for the purpose of care coordination activities. The receiving system or organization must hold records in confidence and comply with all relevant state and federal statutes regarding privacy of disclosed records.
(4)(a) Law enforcement may use booking photographs of a person arrested or confined in a local or state penal institution to assist them in conducting investigations of crimes.
(b) Photographs and information concerning a person convicted of a sex offense as defined in RCW 9.94A.030 may be disseminated as provided in RCW 4.24.550, 9A.44.130, 9A.44.140, 10.01.200, 43.43.540, 43.43.745, 46.20.187, 70.48.470, 72.09.330, and **section 401, chapter 3, Laws of 1990.
(5) Any jail that provides inmate records in accordance with subsection (2) or (3) of this section is not responsible for any unlawful secondary dissemination of the provided inmate records.
(6) For purposes of this section:
(a) "Managed care organization" and "behavioral health administrative services organization" have the same meaning as in RCW 71.24.025.
(b) "***Managed health care system" has the same meaning as in RCW 74.09.522.
[ 2020 c 282 § 1; 2016 c 154 § 6; 2014 c 225 § 105; 1990 c 3 § 130; 1977 ex.s. c 316 § 10.]
NOTES:
Reviser's note: *(1) RCW 70.48.070 was repealed by 1987 c 462 § 23, effective January 1, 1988.
**(2) 1990 c 3 § 401 appears as a note following RCW 9A.44.130.
***(3) RCW 74.09.522 was amended by 2023 c 51 § 43, removing the definition of "managed health care system" and changing "managed health care system" to "managed care organization."
Intent—2016 c 154: See note following RCW 74.09.670.
Severability—1977 ex.s. c 316: See note following RCW 70.48.020.