Out-of-county inmates make cents for Walton

By Patrick Graham – The Walton Tribune

Sheriff says new contract with Fulton a ‘no brainer’ for county

Sheriff Keith Brooks speaks with some of the female inmates from Fulton County being housed in the Walton County Jail as members of the jail staff look on. Photo credit: Patrick Graham

Housing inmates from Fulton County in the new Walton County Jail will generate revenue for the taxpayers of Walton County without presenting an additional threat to the jail’s staff or the community, Sheriff Keith Brooks exclusively told The Walton Tribune.

“It’s a no-brainer to me to be able to bring that kind of revenue back into the jail,” Brooks said. “There were so many years that Walton County taxpayers paid other counties to house prisoners, sometimes up to a million dollars a year, and now we have another county paying us instead.”

Brooks and Fulton County Sheriff Patrick “Pat” Labat signed a contract Aug. 17 for Walton County to begin housing up to 68 inmates from Fulton County annually. Inmates began arriving a few days later. The current Fulton County inmate population is at 34, with no plans to increase beyond that in the short term based on overall inmate population, jail staff size and cell space.

At current levels, the cost of housing the 34 inmates from Fulton County is $372,000 a year. The revenue received from Fulton County, based on the contract pricing, would come to $992,800 annually. As a result, the net to the county would be $620,500 in profit per year.

The more inmates from Fulton County, the higher that profit number would climb, doubling if the 68-inmate limit on the contract were ever reached.

“That money goes into the general fund and can be used for any of the needs of the citizens of Walton County,” Brooks said. “This isn’t money that goes back into my budget or back into the jail’s budget. It goes back to the people.”

Brooks said he has seen the online chatter about bringing inmates from Fulton County, and the type of reputation inmates from there might have, to Walton County and wants to put any potential community fears to rest.

Brooks said all of the inmates coming from Fulton County are female, don’t have violent records or a record of discipline issues in jail, have a clean medical history and, maybe most importantly, will be sent back if they do present a problem after arrival.

“We get to pick who we are going to bring here,” Brooks said. “If they try and start up after they get here, we are going to send them packing. I will not tolerate any disrespect or bad behavior, and they all know that. I make it real clear.”

Brooks said he wants citizens to know these types of contracts have been worked out between sheriffs in the state for many years, and that the one with Fulton County is a good one for Walton County without posing an unnecessary threat to members of the jail staff or the community.

“When these inmates are ready to be released they will be transported back to Fulton County and released from the jail there, not here in Walton County,” Brooks said. “I know some folks were concerned about the inmates maybe getting released here but that’s not going to happen. I’m adamant about protecting the people of Walton County.