Updated 05/14/2026 at 8:27 a.m.
The Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office has outlined a number of improvements, including public safety in its 2025 Strategic Impact Report.
The 32-page report signals a significant drop--61%--in non-safety-related traffic stops in step with national trends.
Washtenaw County Sheriff Alyshia Dyer says enforcement is prioritizing serious safety risks over minor traffic offenses as they move toward a more equitable approach to traffic enforcement. Traffic violations and crashes are down slightly with a marked drop in overall crime and incarcerations.
“Our jail population, when I started as Sheriff, was around 380. It is now dramatically lower. And that is a testament to a lot of the work around reentry.”
The Washtenaw County Jail population now stands at 275. Dyer says they have started rolling out contact visitation in the jail, with a focus on their Innovative Reentry Division, including onboarding a Benefits Specialist and Housing and Reentry Coordinator.
Dyer says her department’s budget has been balanced through cost savings across multiple divisions. She says food and medical costs for the jail have been covered with support from the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners.
The Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office is also reevaluating and restricting its use of vehicle pursuits as it works with the ACLU and national experts to create a pursuit policy that matches best practices.
“Vehicle pursuits can cause safety issues for officers and the public and the people in the vehicles that are fleeing. And they should only be done when it is absolutely necessary. And there's no other means to apprehend someone if they are a serious danger to society.”
Other highlights of the report including expanded training in de-escalation, trauma-informed response, and crisis intervention. Additionally, the department has terminated collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement across all divisions.
Recruitment and retention remains a top priority for the department in an effort to remedy shortages since the pandemic. Dyer says her leadership team will host community forums in the coming months to share progress and next steps.
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