COVINGTON, Ga. — The Newton County Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) rated 100% on the American Correctional Association's (ACA) triennial recertification audit of its detention center recently.
From March 29 through 30, Katherine Brown, Bruce Denny and Timothy Lippett did the audit — which is done every three years — for the ACA to ensure the county's detention facility met the standards established by the agency.
The standards are intended to improve facility operations through adherence to clear standards relevant to all areas or operations of the facility, including safety, security, order, inmate care, programs, justice, and administration, a news release stated.
The ACA's audit included a total of 383 standards, of which 60 were mandatory and 323 were nonmandatory, a news release stated. NCSO was rated 100% on all standards by the auditors "which showed not only the professionalism displayed by the agency but the level of proficiency the agency continued to maintain since its last recertification audit in 2018," a release stated.
The auditors assessed the Detention Center operator's commitment and dedication to ensuring the safety of all staff, inmates, and visitors, for which the auditors praised Sheriff Ezell Brown and staff during a March 30 briefing.
"The auditors were impressed with the prompt response to the inmates’ needs by the detention center staff, and they found no complaints from the inmates regarding the actions of the staff," the release stated.
Additionally, the three auditors mentioned how impressed they were with the inmate programs offered by the Newton County Detention Center. They recommended the agency conduct workshops for other detention facilities across the state and country.
Sheriff Ezell Brown said, “Every day, the Office of the Sheriff strives to meet the highest standards, and the fact that this agency has received 100s across the board since the initial certification in 2016 shows we continue to go above and beyond to improve detention facility operations.
“There is no “I” in team, and everyone within this agency worked and continues to work together to ensure the Newton County Detention Center meets and exceeds all standards established by the ACA," Brown said.
"It is an honor and privilege to be recognized as a model facility on state and national levels, and I thank my staff for believing in my leadership and following through with everything set before them to ensure we achieve gold standards and remain a Triple Crown Agency.”
The NCSO has scored 100% on all standards since the initial certification in 2016.
