MOULTRIE, Ga. (WALB) - The Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office opened a new jail, replacing a facility built in 1990 that officials say had ongoing maintenance and safety issues.

Sheriff Rod Howell said he has pushed for the project since taking office in 2017.

“We started in twenty seventeen, mainly because we knew that we had a thirty year old facility. And it was just, it was costing a lot to maintain it,” Howell said. “A lot of it is we take an oath to, we have to humanely treat all inmates who are brought to the Colquitt County jail. And it gets to a certain point in time when it’s just not humane for our inmates or our staff.”

New facility includes mental health and medical units

Howell said the old facility allowed smoking, which led to pipe damage, leaks and possible mold. The new jail includes a padded mental health cell and a medical unit staffed by professionals with dental equipment.

“So we’re trying to address the needs of our community as we see it. And that is one of the things we have to do is dive into the mental health side of it. We have a padded room for their safety. And then we have the medical wing that they can stay in there as well with medical staff,” Howell said.

The new jail also includes a central control room to monitor all pods at once and four-bunk cells designed to house more inmates and combat overcrowding.

Sheriff cites December escape as example of need for upgrade

Howell said the new jail is more secure, pointing to the Dec. 16 escape of Karon Caldwell and Alan Kennedy from the old facility as an incident that confirmed the need for the upgrade.

“If you don’t have a structurally sound facility, you have escapees. If you have escapees, you have bad things that can happen. This is first and foremost for community safety,” Howell said. “The ceilings are so much higher now. They can’t go up through the ceiling tiles. They actually can’t even get to the ceiling from these new buildings. Every state teaches you something new and that one just only solidified why we were building what we’re building.”

Tours of the new facility are open to the public May 4, 5, and 6 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Have a news tip or see an error that needs correction? Let us know. Please include the article’s headline in your message.

To stay up to date on all the latest news as it develops, follow WALB on Facebook and X (Twitter). For more South Georgia news, download the WALB News app from the Apple Store or Google Play.

Copyright 2026 WALB. All rights reserved.