Recently the Gallatin County Detention Center marked the 10th anniversary of the first inmates moving into the current Detention Center, a project the voters of Gallatin County approved in 2008.
At the Gallatin County Detention Center, we have worked to improve public safety and the quality of life in Gallatin County. We maximize the community’s investment by helping inmates leave a little better than when they come here, so they are less likely to re-offend and end up in jail again. The Detention Center is a division of the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office and shares the mission to serve and protect the residents of Gallatin County. We are proud of the staff and volunteers who have made our detention center the premiere detention facility in the region.
“The Gallatin County Detention Center continues to set the standard for detention facilities across the state,” said Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer. “The design, engineering and operational planning created a facility which still looks new, is highly functional and safe for the detention staff and inmates. This is what happens when community wide collaboration occurs. This process took a number of years, but we got it right and we expect the facility to continue serving this community well into the future.”
To give each person the best chance at success when they re-enter society, the Gallatin County Detention Center offers programs for inmates including medical and mental health services, tutoring, job service, addiction programs and life skills classes. The Detention Center also has a Fresh Start Reentry Program to assist inmates with a discharge plan and follow-up so they can overcome the hurdles that are common on re-entry. Inmates who take advantage of these programs are less likely to return to jail, which leads to lower criminal costs, healthier families and less crime. Gallatin County Detention Center was the first facility in the state to provide these programs to help inmates improve their lives during and after detention, and to rebuild a successful life after leaving.
Thanks to the hard work of staff and volunteers in providing this critical programming for inmates, the recidivism rates of our inmates has maintained at about 18% for the last few years. That is well below the national average.
Some statistics since April 21, 2011, when we first began moving inmates into our detention center:
- 44,850 inmates have been booked
- The average daily population over 10 years is 145 inmates. In the last five years, the average has been 160.
- Over 125,000 hours of inmate programs have been provided by volunteers. Our current roster of volunteers is 196!
- Over 1.5 million meals have been served out of our kitchen.
- We hold inmates for 11 other counties and for Yellowstone National Park.
- We have had four jail commanders in the last 10 years – Dan Springer, Jeff Wade, Jason Jarrett, and currently Jim Anderson.
