Georgia broke ground on a 40-bed, $20.7 million center in Augusta for people found incompetent to stand trial. Across the state, 834 people are on the waitlist.

The state has started building a 40-bed center in Augusta for people who have been found incompetent to stand trial. The Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities broke ground Thursday on the campus of East Central Regional Hospital.

The project costs $20.7 million, paid for by the state under Gov. Brian Kemp and the General Assembly. The department announced it in an Oct. 8 news release. The release does not say when the center will open.

What the center is for

When a judge finds that a person charged with a crime cannot understand the case or help with their own defense, the court can order treatment to restore that ability. This is called competency restoration. The person cannot be tried until it is complete.

Georgia has more people waiting for that treatment than it has beds. As of Sept. 28, 834 people across the state were on the waitlist, the department said.

The department said adding capacity also helps relieve “pressure on local jails and courts as they wait for individuals to receive court-ordered services.”

“With the continued support of Governor Kemp and the General Assembly, we are adding capacity, creating new restoration models and finding ways to move individuals through the system more efficiently,” DBHDD Commissioner Kevin Tanner said.

What is being built

The plan sheet the department released with the announcement names the building the Augusta Jail Restoration Center and gives its address as 1000 Tom Hester Drive. The architectural rendering (PDF) shows a single-story brick building with a fenced, gated entrance and a parking lot.

Architectural rendering of a single-story brick building with the sign Augusta JRC above the entrance, American and Georgia flags, a gated drive and a parking lot, surrounded by pine trees.
A rendering of the Augusta Jail Restoration Center at East Central Regional Hospital. Image: courtesy of the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.

The state already runs one center of this kind. Georgia’s first standalone Jail Restoration Center opened in Dodge County in January 2025. It is meant for people who need competency restoration but do not need treatment in a state psychiatric hospital. The department said it has restored 82 people to competency since it opened.

Augusta’s center is one of several state projects aimed at the waitlist. Later this year, the department expects to break ground on a $409 million, 300-bed forensic hospital building at Georgia Regional Hospital in Atlanta.

What it means for you

  • For Richmond County, the center adds treatment beds in Augusta for a group of people whose wait, the department says, puts pressure on local jails and courts. The release does not say how many beds will serve this area, or how the waitlist breaks down by county.
  • No opening date has been announced. We will update this story when the department sets one.
  • If you need mental health help now, call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. The department runs Georgia’s 988 line.

East Central Regional Hospital is a state hospital in the department’s system. Its Augusta campus handles mental health and forensic services. Augusta also has a state behavioral health crisis center, which the department opened in May.

Our Police and Fire log covers arrests and incidents reported by the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.