The Hall County Correctional Institute’s Re-entry Accountability Court Transition program allows offenders returning to the Northeastern Judicial Circuit a second chance at education, substance abuse treatment and employment prior to their release on parole or probation.
The program aims to return the offender to the community as a productive and law-abiding citizen, according to the Hall County Government website. Hall County Warden Walt Davis said they follow the same model as the accountability courts.
“We have a judge involved that meets with our participants every two weeks. And we kind of focus on three primary areas: employment, substance abuse, treatment, and education,” Davis said, “And many times those are the three things that are impediments to these offenders being able to be successful in society.”
The REACT program started in 2014 and is targeted at offenders that have between two to three years left on their sentence. According to Davis, they can not be a violent offender, sex offender, or a lifter.
“So they have to be relatively low-level offenders. They have to have at least three years to serve in the state prison system because the program lasts around 24 months at a minimum. And they can't have any kind of mental health or chronic medical condition,” Davis said.
Each offender assigned to the REACT program has completed a risk and needs assessment program plan. Based on the assessment, they are placed on a track to complete a program such as substance abuse treatment, education or other needs unique to that offender.
“One of the things that we found is that probably 80 maybe as much as 90 percent of these individuals all have substance abuse or addiction issues. And when you really start peeling back the layers of the onion, that is what's resulted in their criminal behavior,” Davis said.
The Hall County Correctional Institute partners with Lanier Technical College, allowing offenders to get their GED or a state welding certification.
Businesses are able to volunteer or reach out to hire one of the offenders, according to Davis.
