Georgia Administrative Code

(1) Inmates incarcerated in institutions under the jurisdiction of the Board of Corrections may be eligible for compassionate visits, holiday leave, special leave and emergency special leave programs. (2) Criteria for inmate eligibility to participate in such programs shall be es…

Inmates shall be permitted legal materials (including, but not limited to, briefs, petitions, motions, pleadings, and correspondence and courts or legal counsel) and to secure assistance in the preparation of such materials, providing established procedures are observed. The foll…

(1) The Commissioner of the Department of Corrections may designate as a place of confinement any available, suitable, and appropriate Correctional Institution operated under the jurisdiction or supervision of the State Board of Corrections. The Commissioner shall also have sole …

(1) State inmates who are lawfully released from any institution under the jurisdiction of the Board of Corrections shall be provided gratuities in accordance with the provisions of this Rule. (2) When a felony inmate, who is not participating in a work release program is dischar…

When an inmate under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Corrections dies, the following procedures shall be followed: (a) When an inmate dies from natural causes or causes certifiable by the institutional physician and he has designated a next of kin, the Warden/Superintenden…

When an individual has been sentenced under this act, placement at a designated "special alternative incarceration" unit will be approved by the Commissioner, Department of Corrections. (a) In every case where an individual is sentenced under the terms of the special alternative …

The Commissioner shall promulgate procedures to allow for reasonable deductions to be made from money credited to prisoner accounts for the purpose of restitution for acts occurring during a period ordered to be served in the custody of the Commissioner of the Department of Corre…

The vast majority of offender grievances are resolved directly and promptly. In those cases where an offender grievance is not resolved at the initial level, the Warden/ Superintendent shall follow the established procedure whereby an offender who is convinced that he has a legit…

(1) The Warden/Superintendent of each institution shall be responsible for the care, secure detention and control of all inmates assigned to his/her charge. He/She is responsible for the overall security of his/her institution and the effective accomplishment of assigned tasks. T…

(1) Institutional Classification Committees will review the diagnostic and classification records in order to determine the security classification assigned to each newly received inmate in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure on Inmate Classification. (2) Each inmate…

(1) The welfare of an institution may require that some inmates be separated from the general inmate population in order to maintain order at the institution; to protect either the individual inmate or other members of the inmate population or members of the institutional staff; …

(1) Each Warden/Superintendent shall establish and maintain a program of regular inspections of all institutional facilities and equipment, including, but not limited to, confinement facilities, dormitories, cell houses, mess facilities, work shops, storage areas, recreational fa…

The following procedures shall be followed at each institution: (a) A master count of all inmates at each institution shall be conducted at least four (4) times during each twenty-four (24) hour period. Additional counts should be made of all inmates who are maximum, close, or me…

Any item that may be used to aid in or accomplish an escape, create a disturbance or which represents a hazard to the safety and security of the institution shall be placed under control and maintained under the strict supervision of institutional officials and/or employees. The …

The Warden/Superintendent is charged with the prevention of escapes from his institution. However, no matter how well the institutional personnel are trained or how efficiently the operating procedures are executed, occasional escape attempts will be made and a few inmates will i…

(1) Institutions having bloodhounds or other trail dogs used for tracking escapees or assisting law enforcement agencies shall assign and train an appropriate number of Correctional Officers in the effective and efficient handling of the institutional pack. (2) When institutional…

(1) If an inmate escaped from a state institution, the fiscal responsibility for payment of the reward rests with the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections who, at his discretion, may pay the reward to any person from funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Depar…

A correctional community, more than other communities, cannot be operated safely, efficiently, and for the best interests of both society and inmates unless the occupants conform to established standards of orderly behavior. It shall, therefore, be the responsibility of the Warde…

Upon arrival at the prison, all inmates shall be thoroughly instructed concerning the rules and regulations which will govern their conduct, privileges and responsibilities during their stay. Each inmate shall be provided a personal copy of the prison rules and regulations so tha…

Inmates in the correctional system shall be required to comply with applicable Federal and State Laws as well as the rules of the State Board of Corrections and prison rules and regulations promulgated in consonance therewith. Prison Warden/Superintendents will develop a set of c…

The following rules are established and shall govern the conduct of all inmates under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Corrections. Violations of these rules shall be punishable as institutional disciplinary infractions, violations of United States or State Law, or both, as…

The reporting of incidents will be conducted in accordance with standard operating procedures promulgated by the Commissioner.

Disciplinary hearings will be conducted in accordance with standard operating procedures promulgated by the Commissioner. The Commissioner is authorized to establish procedures for assessing a deduction from money credited to the inmate account in all cases in which an inmate is …

Disciplinary actions shall not be administered by any of the following methods: (a) Under no circumstances shall corporal punishment of any kind be administered to any inmate. (b) No form of cruel, inhumane or unusual punishment shall be administered to any inmate. (c) Physical f…

The following is a list of acceptable sanctions which can be used for disciplinary action within the system. Please note that there are now four levels of severity. No variation is permitted without prior written approval from the Division Director, Corrections Division. (a) For …

Following are the disciplinary facilities and procedures for their use: (a) An inmate may be placed in a Disciplinary Isolation cell for a period on the written authority of the Warden/Superintendent. Confinement in Disciplinary Isolation must be supported by a Disciplinary Repor…

The following procedures and restrictions apply to institutional practices concerning Disciplinary Isolation. (a) An inmate may be placed in Disciplinary Isolation after other methods of disciplinary action have proved ineffective or when it is clearly obvious that maximum contro…

The Warden/Superintendent may recommend to the Commissioner of Corrections the transfer of an inmate because of unacceptable conduct. Appropriate documentation by the Warden/Superintendent should accompany the transfer recommendation. When, in the discretion of the Commission of …

Handcuffs, leg chains, waist chains, and waist belts may be utilized in transferring violent or potentially dangerous inmates within a prison or between facilities. These same restraints may also be used in securing violent or potentially dangerous inmates in public and private a…

(1) All incoming and outgoing non-privileged mail is subject to inspection and random reading by correctional staff, in order to reveal escape plots, plans to commit illegal acts, plans to violate institution rules, or other security concerns. (2) The Superintendent may reject co…

Both outgoing and incoming mail will be inspected for contraband. Contraband is considered to be an item not issued to an inmate or available or authorized for purchase through the mail or the institutional store or specifically authorized by the Warden/Superintendent. All incomi…

(1) Inmates may write uncensored and sealed letters to the following officials: (a) The Governor. (b) The Lieutenant Governor. (c) Members of the General Assembly of Georgia. (d) The President and Vice-President of the United States and Members of the United States Congress. (e) …

(1) Inmates may receive a limited number of individual books, periodicals, or newspapers produced by publishing concerns provided the publications are received direct from the publisher concerned or direct from an established retailer. (2) Inmates may not receive books, periodica…

(1) An inmate may receive funds only in the form of United States Postal Money Orders, Cashier's Checks, or Money Orders issued by companies licensed to sell Money Orders in the State of Georgia. Those companies which currently hold a valid license to issue Money Orders are publi…

(1) All packages received at the institution shall be inspected for contraband as previously defined by these rules. Unauthorized items contained in a package to an inmate, except items constituting evidence of a prosecutable offense, shall be returned to the sender by the instit…

The following acts or practices will be considered abuses of the mailing privilege: (a) The writing of letters containing obscene, profane, or indecent language; (b) Writings which contain threats against an individual and writings which contain escape plots; (c) Writings which u…

(1) Commission by an inmate of any of the abuses set forth in Rule , Abuses, will result in disciplinary action which may include withdrawal of an inmate's private correspondence privilege for a specified period. In order to avoid unnecessary apprehension among an inmate's corres…

(1) When abuses specified in Rule of the mail privilege have been found, the Warden/Superintendent may prohibit further correspondence by the inmate with the person to whom the offending material is directed. Removal for abuses (a) and (d) shall be authorized only in accordance w…

Inmates shall not be utilized in processing the mail.

Visiting is an inmate privilege not a right. As such, some or all of an inmate's visiting privileges may be suspended or revoked as a disciplinary measure; because the rules governing visiting are violated; or when the security of the institution so requires. The Warden may modif…

(1) Each new inmate shall be interviewed on arrival at the correctional institution to which he is first permanently assigned by the Warden or his designated representative and shall identify by name, address, and relationship those persons whom he desires to place on his authori…

Institutions shall notify any formerly authorized visitor and the inmate in writing when his (her) name has been removed from an authorized visitor list and the reason therefor. Additionally, when an inmate has lost visitation privileges for any reason and the loss of privilege i…

Each correctional institution shall maintain a visiting area where inmates may visit with their authorized visitors. Toilet facilities shall be available for the visitors.

(1) Each institution will ensure that schedules include a minimum of four hours for visitation to occur on Saturdays, Sundays, and days proclaimed by the Governor of Georgia as legal holidays. County institutions will observe such legal holidays as recognized by their local gover…

(1) All visits shall be supervised by Correctional Officers who shall be held responsible for assuring the maintenance of good order. (2) The Correctional Officer in charge shall determine the identity of each visitor, verify his identity by examining his personal credentials, an…

(1) For the purposes of this chapter, the term attorney includes an inmate's attorney of record or another attorney licensed to practice in State or United States Courts, Court of Appeals, or the Supreme Courts with whom the inmate has or is attempting to establish an attorney-cl…