Washington

What Washington's records show, how much of the state the FBI's data covers, and where the state publishes its own.

How Washington handles a case

Sets bail first: Judge or court commissioner at the preliminary appearance
Who that is: Judges and others
Release on a schedule: In some counties
Time to see a judge: 48 hours
Money bail: Allowed
Risk assessment: Some counties
Prosecutor: Prosecuting attorney, one per county, elected
Public defense: Mixed
Jails run by: Mixed

Who decides release first: A judge or court commissioner sets release at the preliminary appearance. Before that, a district or municipal court may adopt its own bail schedule that the jail applies; adopting one is optional and court by court.
CrRLJ 3.2 CrR 3.2.1 RCW 10.99.045 RCW 3.42.010
Time to see a judge: A judge must decide probable cause within 48 hours of an arrest, counting weekends and holidays. The person must then appear before the court by the close of business on the next court day.
CrR 3.2.1(a), (c), (d)
Money bail: Court rules presume release on personal recognizance except in capital cases. A court may require a bond only after finding a likely failure to appear or a danger, must use the least restrictive conditions, and must consider the person's financial resources when setting a bond.
CrR 3.2

Crime and arrests

No figures yet

Reported offenses and arrests per 100,000 people, year by year, and how Washington compares with the country. They will come from the FBI's state totals.

FBI data coverage

Population covered: 97%; of Washington's people lived under an agency that reported to the FBI in 2025.
Agencies on NIBRS: 100%; 270 of 270 agencies send incident detail.

Counties and agencies: no data yet

Every agency in Washington by county, with the year each began sending incident detail to the FBI. They will come from the FBI's agency list and its NIBRS master files.

Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, pulled 2026-09-26.

State crime reporting

Program: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), CJIS department
Incident reporting: WA NIBRS repository on COPLINK NIBRS (Forensic Logic), agency login only
Annual report: Crime in WashingtonLatest edition: 2025. Editions online 1980 to 2025.
Online portal: No state portal found.
What changed: A separate Summary Reporting Archive covers 2014-2016.

Links and years checked 2026-09-26.

Washington sources

2 sources

WASPC Crime Statistics ReportsState · WA
Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs · Incidents, Arrests · pdf, dashboard · annual
State NIBRS program administered by WASPC, a statutorily designated association rather than a state agency.
Washington Caseloads of the CourtsState · WA
Washington Administrative Office of the Courts · Courts · xlsx, html, pdf, dashboard · annual
Superior court by county, limited courts by court: filings by type, resolutions. Excel current year only (loaded); PDF 1998-2025.

Plus 83 national sources, from the FBI, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Census Bureau, the courts, and others.