Muscogee County sheriff talks about need for new jail after security incident
Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman addressed a security incident at the Muscogee County Jail that led to this month’s arrest of a medical worker under contract at the jail and talked about the need for a new jail.
Countryman told the Ledger-Enquirer the sheriff’s office received intel about a nurse having an inappropriate relationship with an inmate.
He said video showed the inmate manipulating the lock on the cell from the inside to let the nurse into the cell.
“This was a serious security breach,” Countryman said.
Countryman said the inmate involved was a “very dangerous individual” facing 33 felonies.
Jasmine Threatts, an employee of the jail’s contracted medical provider, was arrested and charged with felony improper sexual contact by an employee or agent, the MCSO announced Sept. 14 on its Facebook page.
Countryman said the cell where the incident occurred will not be used and new locks will be put on. The case is still under investigation, he said.
Muscogee County Jail’s lock issues
The jail has had locks pop open in that area when the power failed from “extremely bad weather,” Countryman said.
“We were able to get everybody back into their cell dorms,” he said.
Countryman said other inmates have manipulated the locks in the jail.
When talking about the recent incident involving Threatts at the jail, Countryman said, “This is not an incident that happens all the time.” He called it an “isolated incident.”
Muscogee County Jail’s aging condition
Countryman said the jail comprises a portion built in 2004 and another portion built in 1984
“This jail, in my personal opinion, it has a poor design to it,” he said. “It does not meet the needs of 2025 and beyond.”
Countryman said the jail has an outdated system that would be “very costly” to change.
Muscogee County Jail overcrowding
“We have outgrown this jail years and years and years ago,” Countryman said, “and we have to have something that’s gonna be modern.”
Countryman said the jail was 160 inmates over capacity as of Friday. He said the jail is designed to hold 1,067 inmates.
“The need for a new jail is like yesterday,” he said. “This is going to be a security issue, and if it grows beyond what we have now, I’m gonna have to make some tough decisions to move inmates out of our jail to get with other sheriffs to put them in their jails if they will allow that.”
Countryman said there would be a “huge price tag” to do that. He said the cost to move 200 inmates throughout Georgia would be at least $12 million per year.
“This is why we can’t continue to kick this can down the road,” he said. “This is something that I’ve been fighting from day one being in office.”
Progress on possible new jail
The Columbus Council voted last month to allow for a design consultant to start the schematic design process for a new jail at a potential location on 11th Avenue.
Columbus director of code and inspections Ryan Pruett recommended the property at 601 and 602 11th Avenue — 1 mile from the jail at 700 E. 10th St. — during the Aug. 12 council meeting.
The property also is within a mile of Columbus Recorder’s Court, where preliminary hearings are conducted, a feature deemed critical based on feedback from the sheriff’s office, according to SLAM Collaborative architect Shane Clark.
“What makes this a unique site is that it’s a city-owned property,” Clark said. “So there’s no acquisition costs involved.”
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The estimated construction budget for a new jail at this site would be $398 million, according to Gilbane Building Company senior project executive Henry Painter.
Doug Shaw, a corrections expert with Jericho Design Group, said the new jail would house about 1,600 beds with a possible expansion that would raise the number to 2,000.
“The majority of the building is really the housing units themselves,” Shaw said. “The support areas are not as big.”
Columbus Public Works director Drale Short told the council in August the Muscogee County Jail is aging and deteriorating. Issues include a compromised roof structure, mold and plumbing.