Hays State Prison

Hays State Prison is a prison for adult male inmates located in Trion, Georgia. It opened its doors in 1990, and between the main facility and annex, it has a maximum capacity of 1,683. 

This close security facility serves the Georgia Department of Corrections through housing and managing some of the state's most challenging offenders. It provides the offender population with a variety of structured programs intended to minimize recidivism and initiate an effective re-entry program. It houses a Faith & Character based dormitory and serves as the host facility for the Paulding Probation Detention Center. Hays State Prison is a Tier I & II facility. 

Hays State Prison is comprised of ten general population dorms, consisting of 62 beds per dorm for a total of 620. One Fast Track building houses 256, and there are six Special Management Unit dorms consisting of 218 beds. 

Hays Annex consists of eight dorms with 50 beds per dorm for a total of 400 beds. The outside fire station has ten beds and the infirmary has 9 beds. The facility also houses approximately 500 level II mental health offenders throughout the institution. Hayes also houses a C.E.R.T. Team, two Tactical Squads, a Special Management Unit (SMU), a Canine Unit, and a Fire Station.

In late 2012 and early 2013, a total of four inmates were killed in the facility: Derrick Stubbs on December 19, although he had been placed in protective custody within the prison; Damion MacClaim on December 26; Nathaniel Reynolds on January 18, and Pippa Hall-Jackson on February 5. 

Two Hays guards were also injured by stabbings in late January, even though the facility was on full security lockdown. In February, another guard was stabbed 22 times. In May 2012, a CERT Officer was stabbed twice in the face and the father of an inmate claimed that he was forced to pay $19,000 ransom to other current Hays prisoners, or else his son would be hurt or killed.

The Southern Center for Human Rights lodged a complaint that "prisoners routinely slept in cells to which they were not assigned and they (were) able to move undetected across the prison campus."

On January 17, 2019, inmate Marion Antwan Luke was assaulted and murdered by another inmate. Luke's case is still being investigated by the Georgia Department of Corrections. His maximum release date was 06/12/2019, however, he was scheduled to be released 4 days before he was assaulted and murdered.

Hays is one of several high-security Georgia state prisons found to have a large percentage of inoperative locks. In September 2012, auditors found 42% of the locks in Hays either didn't work or could be easily defeated.

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

The visiting days and hours at Hays State Prison are Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM.

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

All visitors, age 16 and over, must have a photo ID to visit an inmate. 

The only items you can bring to a visit are an identification card, car keys, and money. No food or drink can be brought into the facility from the outside other than bottled formula or store-bought products for babies. 

You are allowed to bring a maximum of twenty dollars ($20.00) in coins to be used for the vending machines. Electronic devices are not allowed in the visiting area. 

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

Visitors must wear appropriate clothing. 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 undergarments such as bras, panties, and slips. 

Inappropriate clothing includes, 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

Video Visits

Hays State Prison offers video visits through JPay. You must have a JPay account, and the video visit can last up to 30 minutes. The fee for a 30-minute video visit is $3.95.

Remember to include the inmate’s full name and inmate ID number on all correspondence. Be careful what you mail to an inmate because all mail is monitored by prison staff. It’s best to just keep it simple with regular paper, a regular envelope, and pics of family and friends. 

You can send a package to an inmate through the Georgia Inmate Package Program. You can also send and receive videograms and emails through JPay, which costs anywhere between one and three stamps each.

How to Call an Inmate

You can’t call an inmate at Hays 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

You must use JPay or MoneyGram to send money to an inmate at Hays State Prison. 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

Academic: General Education Diploma, Adult Basic Education, Literacy

Counseling: Family Violence, Moral Reconation Therapy, Motivation for Change, Thinking for a Change, Career Center, Behavior Stabilization, Re-Entry, Matrix, Anger Management

Recreation: General Recreation, Intramural Sports

Religious Activities: Various Worship Services, Kairos, Faith/Character based dorm

Vocational/OJT: General Office, Laundry, Warehouse, Barbershop, Grounds-keeping, Optics and Mattress Industry, Food Service, Building Maintenance, Custodial Maintenance, In 2 Work (Food Service)

WORK DETAILS:

Hays Annex sends out 14 revenue contract details which include the Department of Transportation, DNR Counties of Chattooga, Catoosa, and Whitfield as well as the cities of Trion and Ringgold. GCIC Optics, GCI Mattress and Aramark Food Service are also supported by offender labor.

Pictures of Hays State Prison

Careers at Hays State Prison

Nestled in the serene mountains in North Georgia, Hays State Prison boasts about the positive atmosphere created by its staff members. They strive to provide the offender with basic life tools they can use to rebuild their lives once they are released from incarceration. 

The staff at Hays State Prison provides top notch security for over 1,000 offenders, ensuring the local communities feel safe at home and as they move about the area. Hays is one of five close security facilities, and they exceed expectations daily. They are always ready to welcome new staff members and provide the encouragement for them to grow professionally within the organization.