Fulton County updates jail-hiring efforts: 10 new jail hires in July, Walls Group pipeline still being assessed

County HR presented a correction to previously reported hiring numbers and provided an update on jail staffing and jail-population reduction initiatives.

Kenneth L. Herman Jr., Chief HR Officer, said the earlier slide overstated July figures; the accurate count is 10 new hires in the jail for July, with nine additional candidates expected to start pending HR processing. Herman said Walls Group candidates are averaging about 87 days from application to appointment this year (compared with a county benchmark of 60 days) but that the hire rate is improving and some process changes have reduced bottlenecks.

Commissioners pressed county staff on why the Walls Group's pipeline appears less productive than in other jurisdictions. Staff and multiple commissioners said differences include extra verification steps in Fulton County (longer employment-history reviews, local polygraph requirements or dedicated investigators), duplication of background checks between Walls and the sheriff's office, and residency limitations that helped recruitment elsewhere. "The sheriff determines suitability for hires," Kenneth Herman said; commissioners asked whether the sheriff's office could accept more of Walls' referrals or whether HR should resume providing candidates directly.

Board members also asked for separations data and reasons people leave (including whether departures are transfers to other county departments). Herman said separations in the report were full separations (leaving the county) and that transfers could be pulled separately.

The presentation also reviewed jail-reduction measures that run in parallel: ankle-monitor utilization (709 devices in use as of June 30, +108 since March), an August bond-review calendar pilot, a consolidated motions/trial calendar to accelerate processing, and expanded diversion-hub capabilities with an on-call judge to resolve low-level warrants. Commissioners asked staff to provide clarifying pipeline definitions (inquiry vs. application) and to return with exit-interview reasons for separations.

Outcome: The board received the update and directed HR and the sheriff's office to clarify counts, separations reasons, and pipeline definitions and report back. No formal vote was required.