Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office reports crime is down

Published 1:30 am Monday, February 16, 2026

EVERETT — Homicides and auto thefts are among crimes that are on the decline across the region, Sheriff Susanna Johnson reports in her newsletter.

Homicides have reached a recent low, Johnson wrote. In 2025, there were three homicide investigations compared to 12 in 2024.

Auto thefts decreased by more than 50%, with 864 cases in 2024 and 426 cases in 2025. Meanwhile, burglaries went from 777 cases in 2024 to 615 in 2025.

Domestic violence cases declined from 1,480 in 2024 to 1,302 in 2025.

While crime is on the decline, it is difficult for the sheriff’s office to attribute the decrease to a specific program or initiative, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Courtney O’Keefe said in an email.

“However, our deputies on patrol work hard every day to reduce and combat criminal activity in our neighborhoods,” she said. “And our corrections deputies and medical staff work tirelessly within the jail to support programs aimed at addressing addiction, reducing substance use and lowering recidivism.”

At the Snohomish County Jail, the percentage of inmates booked into the facility who tested positive for fentanyl was approximately 26% as of Feb. 9, the newsletter said. At its peak, that number reached 38%.

The Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force underwent a year-long undercover operation that resulted in detectives seizing 59 guns, including 31 handguns and 12 assault rifles while making 16 arrests on state and federal charges, O’Keefe said.

As Johnson crossed the halfway point in her first term as sheriff, she wrote in the newsletter how she looks forward to the years ahead.

“Despite continued challenges with staffing in our industry, and years of a structural imbalance with our budget that impacts resources and pay, our people show up every day and work hard because they care about our community,” she said.

At an administrative meeting in August, the sheriff’s office was one of four departments called to discuss how they were projected to spend over their budgets, on top of an existing $16 million structural deficit. The sheriff’s office requested $4.2 million to balance its biennial budget while the Department of Corrections requested $14.7 million.

Johnson attributed the overspending to increased wages, benefits and overtime, including a collective bargaining agreement with the corrections guild that specifies a 2.25 overtime multiplier for which the department received no additional funds.

During 2024 and 2025, the sheriff’s office hired 158 employees to fill vacant positions, not including internal promotions, the newsletter said

Last January, the sheriff’s office had 104 total vacancies, O’Keefe said. As of the beginning of this year, there are 100.5 total vacancies, 42 of which are corrections deputies and 40 are deputy sheriffs.

Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan