Kootenai County jail to appear on reality TV show
KAYE THORNBRUGH | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 month AGO
The Kootenai County jail
MADISON HARDY/Press file
Kaye Thornbrugh is a second-generation Kootenai County resident who has been with the Coeur d’Alene Press for six years. She primarily covers Kootenai County’s government, as well as law enforcement, the legal system and North Idaho College. | March 12, 2026 1:08 AM
COEUR d’ALENE — The Kootenai County jail will be featured in a new season of the reality TV series “Jail,” with filming expected to occur this summer.
Commissioners voted unanimously this week to approve Langley Productions’ request to film inside the jail. The production company is the same one behind the TV show “Cops.”
“We believe this is a way to highlight the hard work that our people are doing in the jail and the problems we’re facing,” Capt. Jeremy Hyle told commissioners. “It would also be a good recruiting tool.”
Langley Productions contacted the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office last year, according to public records, and sent a letter in December outlining the terms under which the company will produce episodes of “Jail” with the cooperation of KCSO.
Hyle told commissioners that filming will focus on the jail’s booking area, documenting arrested people as they arrive and their interactions with deputies.
The privacy of inmates, staff and members of the public will be protected, Hyle said, and no one will appear in footage unless they sign a consent form.
“Maybe somebody wants to be a movie star,” Commissioner Marc Eberlein joked during Tuesday’s business meeting.
“Some of them will become movie stars for sure,” Commissioner Bruce Mattare replied.
Taking photos and recording videos in the jail is not normally allowed for security reasons, Hyle said.
KCSO personnel will have the right to review and comment on completed rough cuts before broadcast for “accuracy, protection of nonpublic information and investigatory techniques and otherwise for the protection of the public trust,” according to the letter sent by Langley Productions.
“We get to view all of the footage before it airs, so we can make sure there are no security issues or anything that we don’t want on TV aired,” Hyle said.
There is no need for additional sheriff's office staff during filming, Hyle said, and KCSO’s participation won’t cost the county anything.
Langley Productions will add Kootenai County and the sheriff’s office to its comprehensive general liability insurance policy, which will have a minimum coverage of $1 million, according to public records.
The crew will consist of a single cameraman and producer vetted in advance, Hyle said.
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