Baldwin State Prison

Baldwin State Prison is a prison for men located in Hardwick, Georgia. It can house a maximum of 925 medium-security inmates. It is part of the Middle Georgia Correctional Complex, which has a total of five prisons. Also on the prison grounds is a boot camp housing 240.

The mission of Baldwin State Prison is to ensure public safety and effectively house close security offenders while operating a safe and secure facility. Baldwin offers Mental Health Level III services including a Supportive Living Unit, nine acute care beds, and seven crisis stabilization beds. 

Additionally, Baldwin provides Mental Health evaluation and support services for six facilities, it is a host facility for a transportation hub, and it has a 17-bed infirmary as well as several on-site specialty clinics that offer to provide care on an as-needed basis.

There are seven housing units in the open dormitory, tiered living unit, or two-man cell design. Housing also includes Acute Care, Crisis Stabilization, hospital infirmary and segregation. This facility also houses a C.E.R.T. Team and a Tactical Squad.

The Baldwin State Prison was previously known as the Baldwin Correctional Institution and the Georgia Women's Correctional Institution (GWCI), However, after complaints in the early 1990s by more than 200 women of sexual abuse by guards, an investigation was conducted and more than a dozen guards were prosecuted. 

As part of the scandal, 15 men and women were indicted on criminal charges of sexually abusing prisoners. Two prison guards pleaded guilty and received probation. A Baldwin County jury acquitted another prison guard. The state dropped charges against the other accused parties. 

The state decided to move the women to other prison facilities for a total change in culture. This facility now houses only adult male felons.

Baldwin was one of nine Georgia state prisons implicated in an FBI sting operation announced in February 2016. The agency indicted 47 correction officers who had agreed to deliver illegal drugs while in uniform. These charges were "part of a larger public corruption investigation into Georgia Correctional Facilities.”

Around 5:45 a.m. on June 13, 2017, a group of inmates from this prison were being transported in a bus on Georgia Highway 16, in Putnam County, Georgia. Two inmates overpowered the guards and obtained their firearms. The suspects then shot and killed two of the guards, escaped the scene and later stole a vehicle. 

Following an unsuccessful home invasion, the suspects were caught two days later in Shelbyville, Tennessee and taken into custody.

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

Visiting hours at Baldwin State Prison are on Saturdays, Sundays, and State Holidays from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.

You must fill out an application and be approved by the Georgia Department of Corrections before you can visit an inmate. For complete details about the visiting process at Baldwin State Prison, click here.

Visitors age 16 and over are required to present positive identification prior to their admission for visiting. A driver's license with a picture, a picture identification card issued by the Department of Public Safety, or other acceptable photographic identification card.

Visitors can only bring into the facility an identification card, car keys, and money. No food or drink will be brought into the facility from the outside other than bottled formula or like store-bought products for babies. 

Visitors will be allowed to bring a maximum of twenty dollars ($20.00) in coins to be used for the vending machines. Funds from visitors for offenders will be accepted only through the mail. Musical instruments, radios, pets, cell phones, cameras, or tape recorders will not be allowed in the visiting area. 

All visitors are subject to a preliminary search by electronic surveillance instruments (metal detectors, etc.). Any items you bring into the facility will be searched by officers assigned to the visitation area.

Visitors are required to wear appropriate attire. Shoes are required at all times for visitors, including children if they are able to walk or stand. 

Male visitors are required to wear shirts and full-length trousers. Females may wear trousers, or if a female visitor wears a dress, skirt or other similar garment, it may NOT be more than two (2) inches above the knees. Furthermore, all female visitors must wear foundation type garments such as bras, panties, and slip. 

Inappropriate clothing shall include, but is not limited to:  

• Dresses or tops with thin straps which expose shoulders or chest area in any manner
• Tube tops or halters of any type
• Any type of clothing which reveals the stomach or midriff area
• Any type of clothing that is made of sheer or transparent material
• Shorts of any kind or any kind of slacks that are above the knee (twelve years old and under may wear shorts)
• Male visitors are not permitted to wear tank tops or short tops of any kind, nor see-through tops made of net or mesh webbing. 
• Shorts are not permitted (children twelve 12 years old and under may wear shorts)
• Any other type of clothing that is suggestive or revealing in any way is prohibited

This facility also has the option of video visits through JPay.

You can send a package to an inmate through the George Inmate Package Program.

How to Call an Inmate

You can’t call an inmate at Baldwin State Prison, but they do have access to phones during approved hours. For complete details on how to call an inmate in Georgia, please click here.

How to Send Money

To send money to an inmate at Baldwin State Prison, you must use JPay or MoneyGram. The fees for this service vary based on which method you use and the amount of money you are sending.

JPay Options

• Online or Mobile App: To send an inmate money with your credit or debit card, visit JPay.com or download the JPay Mobile App that is available at the Apple App Store (for iPhones) and Google Play (for Android phones).
• By phone: Call (800) 574-5729 to talk with a live JPay call center agent and send money with a debit or credit card. 
• Mail a money orderㅡmade payable to JPayㅡwith a deposit slip to:

JPay
P.O. Box 260010
Hollywood, FL 33026

A money order deposit slip is available here.

Moneygram

If you would like to use cash, visit a MoneyGram location in person and use receive code 6857. MoneyGram locations include all Walmarts and CVS Pharmacies. 

Programs For Inmates

WORK DETAILS

Food Distribution Warehouse, Outside Grounds, Georgia Military College, Care and Custody, Arnall Building, Food Distribution Unit Meat Plant, Food Distribution Maintenance, Food Distribution, Vehicle Maintenance, GCI Warehouse, Georgia State Patrol

PROGRAMS

Academic: GED, ABE, Literacy Remedial Education, Special Education

Counseling: HIV Awareness, Positive Mental Attitude, Re-Entry, T4C, Celebrate Recovery, Family Violence, Integrity Program, Numerous Mental Health Groups, M4C, AA

Recreation: General Recreation

Religious Activities: Various Worship Services, Gospel Music, Pastoral Counseling

Vocational/OJT: Food Preparation, Horticulture, Graphic Arts, Maintenance, Forklift operation, Barber.

Pictures of Baldwin State Prison

Careers at Baldwin State Prison

If you are interested in a job at Baldwin State Prison, click here. 

New employees select their benefits within 30 days of hire date. Changes can be made within 30 days of a life-changing event during the year (for example a qualifying event would be birth or adoption of a child, death in the family, marriage, divorce).