News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
DeKalb County officials will explore options to build a new County Criminal Justice Center.
County Mayor Matt Adcock said the current county jail does not meet certain code standards. During recent meetings with state officials, Adcock said the Tennessee Corrections Institute’s Bob Bass recommended a brand-new criminal justice center rather than just upgrading the current jail.
“Now a concern is that we are walking our inmates across the road from the jail to the courthouse and then they have to walk upstairs and go to court,” Adcock said. “Well, this would be a safer facility where they would actually be in the same building.”
Adcock said likely one of the biggest challenges will be to find a piece of property suitable. He said one requirement for a criminal justice center is that it is in the Smithville city limits.
Adcock said the plans are still not set in stone and there is work yet to be done. He said this summer, they will talk to court officials, the sheriff, and other key players about what needs to be included in the plans for the prospective project.
“Identifying what needs to be in the building is very important to know how big it needs to be, how much it’s going to cost,” Adcock said. “So we really want to get our officials’ opinions on things, our special groups, our attorneys, District Attorneys, commissioners, then we can talk about the layout of the jail towards January 2024.”
Adcock said the tentative timeline will have the property search starting in April 2024.
