Candler County opens doors to new jail facility

by Julianne Sheehan

METTER, Ga. (WTOC) - Candler County held an open house Monday night for its new jail, which has room to house just over 100 inmates.

The current Candler County jail is only about half full due to health and safety concerns, according to the county.

New facility replaces aging jail

The new jail sits next to the old jail in Metter, which was designed to hold 74 inmates. Recent occupancy at the old jail has been around 40 inmates at a time because of the building’s conditions. Candler County Sheriff John Miles said the two facilities are a night and day difference.

“It’s so much better for our staff to have a safe, clean environment to work in, the old jail was pretty worn,” Miles said.

About four years ago, the old Candler County jail began experiencing water leaks, plumbing problems and other structural concerns, forcing the county to house inmates in other jails and pay for regular repairs that cost more than $100,000 last year alone, according to Miles.

“We always settled on the same thing, ‘It can’t be fixed it’s time to think about building a new jail.’ Fast forward to now, we are about to complete that project,” Miles said.

Project cost and transparency

The project cost the county nearly $12 million. Miles said Monday night’s open house was another way for his office to provide transparency.

“So we thought this might be a good opportunity to have people come into the jail and see where their money went,” Miles said.

New features

The raised occupancy limits are not the only upgrade. The jail now has handicap accessible cells and a designated medical facility. Previously, staff used the booking area as a makeshift infirmary.

Other additions include rooms designed for inmates with mental health needs and two juvenile holding cells separated from the general population, eliminating the previous need for staff to sit with juvenile inmates to keep them safe.

The jail is also equipped with intercoms in cells and housing pods, allowing inmates to alert guards without banging on doors, along with an expanded camera system covering every cell. Staff will press buttons near each cell during nightly rounds to create a digital log confirming the check.

“We are able to do more with less personnel, because we have cameras in literally every cell,” Miles said.

Miles said the cameras make the job easier and safer.

“When we do the checks, we have the videos that are in the cells, we have the body cam videos, and we have the mechanism that logs when the jailer makes his rounds. So, we have, like, three levels of documentation for securing the inmates,” Miles said.