Social worker unknowingly delivers prescription opiates to inmate at Snohomish County Jail

Officials say a social worker visiting the Snohomish County Jail nearly delivered prescription opiates to an inmate by accident.

The social worker arrived December 13th with a package marked as “legal documents.”

She was scheduled to meet with an inmate in the jail, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

The Everett Herald reports corrections officers inspected the package she was carrying and found strips of Suboxone, a drug used to treat opioid addiction.

Officials questioned the social worker, but determined it was unlikely she was involved in an illegal, drug-smuggling operation.

In a statement made to the Everett Herald, investigators said “it appears the social worker was not involved in the plan and unknowingly transported the narcotics into the facility.”

According to the Herald, investigators examined the package while the 35-year-old inmate she had planned to visit watched.

Police did not arrest the social worker, but say the investigation into the incident is continuing.

Officials reported the package contained at least nine sublingual strips of what was suspected to be Suboxone.

Authorities say Suboxone has been a problem for jail administrators for a long time and is often abused by inmates.

A week before the incident involving the social worker, officials say another inmate unsuccessfully tried to smuggle an even larger supply of similar opiate strips into the jail.

That inmate also attempted to bring in a stash of methamphetamine.

Officials say corrections officers intercepted that shipment, confiscated the drugs, and stopped them before they could be circulated among the jail population.

The Snohomish County Jail has a long history of inmates overdosing on drugs over the last two years.

That includes incidents which have resulted in several deaths among Snohomish County inmates.

Between September 2023 and January 2024, four inmates died at the jail.

According to the Everett Herald, three of the four deaths occurred in the detox unit, where corrections officers are responsible for monitoring inmates with opiate, benzodiazepine or serious alcohol addictions.

Last year, emergency responders had to revive two inmates after a prisoner smuggled fentanyl powder into the facility.

Before that, medics transported seven Snohomish County Jail inmates to a hospital after they apparently overdosed on smuggled fentanyl.

Earlier this year, Snohomish County Sheriff Susanna Johnson announced her administration would explore new strategies to prevent more inmate deaths.

Proposals being introduced include cameras used to monitor medical detox cells and a K-9 unit to detect drugs brought into the jail.

She also called for implementing technology to check on the vital signs of inmates in the detox center, to recognize when they approach dangerous levels.

Under a recently passed state law, corrections staff are mandated to conduct a review of unexpected jail deaths.  The review is supposed to include an analysis of the cause of death and plans for preventing them from occurring in the future.

Authorities are required to submit the findings uncovered in those reviews to the Washington State Department of Health within 120 days.

Tom Brock is a weekend editor, reporter and anchor for KIRO Newsradio.