DALLAS — The Dallas County jail has more inmates than it is authorized to hold for the first time in nearly two decades, county leaders said Tuesday.

Hitting 100% capacity at the detention center raises the possibility that Dallas County will have to join other large urban counties in paying for other municipalities to house Dallas inmates at an increased cost to taxpayers.

"We are in crisis," said Dallas County Criminal Justice Department Director Charlene Randolph on Tuesday. "We are at 100 %. Our book-ins are at record levels."

The midnight count was 7,124 inmates — 20 more than the jail is currently authorized for, said Commissioner John Wiley Price during a public meeting.

"We need to get those numbers down, and we’re doing everything we can to do that," County Judge Clay Jenkins

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