MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. -- Neither the Governor nor the Georgia Department of Corrections would elaborate Tuesday on a plan to reopen a closed facility to house elderly sex offenders.
The proposal would spend $6 million to renovate the former Bostick State Prison, a Milledgeville facility that closed in 2010.
Treatment for elderly sex offenders is often more expensive in the regular system, and a specialized facility would service a population most nursing homes won't touch.
In a hearing last Wednesday, Corrections Commissioner Brian Owens said medicaid money could be used to treat the 150 inmates. It's not clear whether the renovated facility would keep the same amount of security infrastructure as the former prison.
"The governor believes this is the safest and most efficient way to ensure inmates needing medical care receive appropriate treatment while also keeping convicted offenders off Georgia's streets," read a statement from Governor Nathan Deal's office.
Several Milledgeville residents told 11Alive any jobs would be welcomed by the community. They said sex offenders already lived in the general prison populations around Milledgeville, and as long as they stay inside the gates, there shouldn't be any controversy.
"Most of them are going to be sickly and elderly and not able to hardly walk or get around anyway," said former corrections worker Richard Grable. "So there isn't any way they're going to pose any harm or threat to the community or the kids out in the community anyway.
For the proposal to move forward, it would need approval from the state legislature.