Habersham pulls out of plans for a regional jail

TOCCOA - Rabun and Stephens counties in the northeast Georgia may build a jail to share in Toccoa. <br> <br> Officials say having a joint facility will save taxpayer money. The counties are relatively rural and think they won&#39;t have any trouble maintaining just one jail. <br> <br> The decision to share a jail comes after Habersham County backed out of a jail-sharing plan. All three counties at one point discussed sharing a jail. <br> <br> A joint Rabun-Stephens County Jail could be located on part of approximately one-hundred acres Stephens County already owns. <br> <br> Habersham County commissioners voted Monday to scrap the idea of a three-county jail for the time being, given residents rejection of the idea. <br> <br> Habersham County lies between the other two counties and would have been a logical location for a joint jail, but that idea was unpopular among county residents. <br> <br> Rabun County&#39;s jail in Clayton dates from 1967 and houses an average of 36 prisoners a day. <br> <br> Stephens County&#39;s current jail was built in 1961 and holds an average of 85 and 100 prisoners a day.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/2/198324