First, we started with the numbers:
- Anywhere from 56-71 detainees, depending upon the day, housed in the Chatham County Detention Center awaiting hearings or trials for more than 1,000 days.
- That's nearly three years per person.
- Prior to the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, the Chatham District Attorney's office had a backlog of 5,000 pending cases. In the year since, 4,600 more cases have been added to the tally.
- These delays cost taxpayers roughly $5.3 million.
But, a number is never just a number. Every single one has a face behind it:
- A beleaguered county prosecutor with a caseload worthy of three attorneys;
- A detainee whose life is on hold awaiting the next step in a long and winding process;
- A victim seeking closure and their own sense of justice.
Reporter Raisa Habersham talks to the people behind those numbers to help us all understand why some inmates remain in jail for more than a thousand days and what it costs us all.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: The story behind the numbers: 58 inmates, 3 years, and $5.3 million in taxpayers' dollars
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