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Fulton County reports jail population pressure, falling electronic monitoring caseload and maintenance backlog
Summary
County staff reported a 1-day snapshot of 2,969 inmates, an average length of stay of 206 days, a reduction in electronic monitor placements year-over-year and a maintenance backlog of about 1,039 open work orders; officials set targets and timelines to reduce the backlog and complete phase 1 of a repair "blitz."
Fulton County officials told the Board of Commissioners on Sept. 17 that the jail system faces continued population pressure and infrastructure maintenance challenges while the county—s electronic monitoring caseload has decreased from the prior year.
Key numbers and findings presented to commissioners - Jail population: countywide snapshot on Sept. 9 showed 2,969 inmates. - Average length of stay: 206 days (a one-day improvement from the prior report). - Unindicted population: about 20 percent of inmates were unindicted; roughly 80 percent of the unindicted group had been in custody 90 days or less. - Electronic monitoring: David Summerlin, Court Administrator, said the total number of court-ordered electronic monitors fell from 1,108 in August 2024 to 643 as of Sept. 1, 2025. - Beds out of service: 516 beds were offline for repairs across the facility footprint. - Maintenance workload: the county receives roughly 1,500 corrective work orders per month. August reported 1,434 new work orders with 1,019 completed (71%) and a current open-work-order backlog of approximately 1,039; the county—s target is to reduce open work orders to under 500 by December 2025.
What officials said Joseph Davis, director of Real Estate and Asset Management, summarized the maintenance effort as a multi-phase blitz: “We have completed 9 of 11 housing units, estimating about 82% of the overall work associated with phase 1.” He said the program would focus next on 7 South (maximum-security needs) and that phase 1 of the blitz is projected to finish in October 2025.
David Summerlin said the county has moved from ad hoc reviews of monitored cases to scheduled bimonthly status reviews: “We're having continuous bimonthly status reviews of these electronic monitor cases... Those reviews are prioritized by length of time on the monitor, and it's been very effective.” Summerlin added that a new six-month limit on bond orders involving electronic monitoring has been implemented for newly issued orders and that older cases are being reviewed under the new standard.
County and justice partners flagged next steps County staff said they are creating a multidisciplinary task force to prepare for two new state judges and to expedite case processing; staff also plan to report utilization metrics for the diversion center beginning in October, including daily census and monthly and year-to-date diversions. The county manager said a new Justice Project management resource position will be posted in October with a mandate to increase diversions and manage justice initiatives.
On facilities, staff said lead times for specialty parts drive some backlog (metal parts with lead times up to 16 weeks), that the county is adding technicians to maintenance staffing and that some projects (fire alarm upgrade phase 2, kitchen equipment, padded cells) are complete or under way. Officials said the county has added a second maintenance vendor at the South Annex and is coordinating with consultant EMSI to track monthly maintenance productivity and reduction of the backlog.
Ending note Officials asked commissioners to remain focused on case processing and pretrial strategies that reduce lengths of stay. Staff will return with more detailed metrics, trend lines and a diversion-center utilization report beginning in October.
