Sheriff's
Office Home |
During the Colonial period one might find inhabitants of the Fairfax County jail who were convicted of Sabbath breaking, drunkenness, adultery, and public swearing. Not only have the laws for incarceration changed since then, but so has the county facility.
The first courthouse moved from an area where Tyson's Corner now stands to Alexandria Old Town on Market Square. Neither structure stands today, but the third courthouse, which was built in 1800, is at the corner of Main Street and Chain Bridge Road, in the City of Fairfax. It is next door to the old jail that was originally built in 1802, burned in 1884, and was rebuilt and renovated in the early twentieth century. It now houses the Administrative Services Division of the Sheriff's Office.
The Adult Detention Center (ADC) is unique in the nation because it provides all three forms of jail housing—linear, podular remote, and direct supervision. Both male and female deputy sheriffs manage the inmate population, which averages about 1,300 daily. Most of a new 750-bed expansion opened in the fall of 2000.
While in custody at the ADC, inmates await trial and sentencing, or release after completing their sentence. Generally, the facility takes offenders sentenced to no more than one year in the longest of cases. Those inmates sentenced to serve extended time in prison are transferred to appropriate state facilities.
Juvenile offenders are managed separately from the adult inmate population and have a separate court system as well.
The Sheriff's Office offers alternative incarceration programs for inmates who qualify according to the Virginia Department of Corrections and the Code of Virginia. These programs include work release, electronic incarceration, community labor force, weekender work, as well as community service and fines option programs. The center prepares inmates for transition back to the community.