Jail scores in top 10% in country

**Wilson Jail Scores in Top 10% in Country**

*By Drew C. Wilson*
[email protected] | 252-265-7818

An independent auditor recently gave high marks to the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office for its operation of the Wilson County Detention Center after spending two days at the facility.

Auditor Chad Wicker of the American Correctional Association conducted the audit. With more than 20 years of correctional experience, Wicker visited the jail last week to assess the facility’s compliance with national standards.

“We conducted an on-site audit with the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office in Wilson to see if they were in compliance with the core jail standards manual, which consists of about 148 standards,” Wicker explained. These standards cover basic requirements that small jails must meet to operate efficiently, effectively, safely, and securely.

The audit included a comprehensive tour of the jail, interviews with staff and inmates, and a thorough review of facility operations. Wicker noted that the most time-consuming part of the process was reviewing all the standards alongside proofs provided by the facility to ensure compliance.

“It takes about a day and a half to conduct that,” he said. “At the end of that, we determine if they successfully meet the accreditation standard set by the American Correctional Association.”

Wicker added, “The thing with an audit is you always find things to improve. No jail is stagnant. It either needs to improve or, moving forward, better itself.”

He praised the Wilson County Detention Center, stating, “We found the facility to be very clean. The staff was very engaged with the inmates. The culture was very high — a great environment.”

Though there is always room for improvement, Wicker summarized the overall impression: “I think they have a great facility there.”

Out of more than 3,000 county jails in the country, only about 300 are accredited. “So the facility in the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office is in the top 10% of facilities in the country as far as their detention facility goes, and that is something impressive for the citizens of Wilson County,” Wicker said.

The jail scored 96.6% on the audit. Wicker explained that “there are 47 standards that they must be 100% compliant with, and they were.” Additionally, “there are 104 standards that require at least 90% compliance,” which the detention center also passed comfortably.

“The accreditation process is something many facilities choose not to pursue because they don’t want to put in the extra work to improve,” Wicker noted.

Having visited facilities across the country, Wicker said what impressed him most about Wilson County was “such a great culture. Everybody seems to be pulling the rope in the same direction. You just don’t see that at many places.”

He attributes this strong culture to the leadership, commenting, “I think that is a direct reflection of the sheriff and the leadership at the jail. They really have a great culture there, and everybody seems to be working together to improve the facility and keep the citizens of Wilson County safe.”
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