The administrator of the largest county jail in Maine will be assuming the helm of Western Tidewater Regional Jail on Dec. 16.

Jeffrey L. Newton, administrator of the Cumberland County Jail, was named superintendent of the regional jail on Tuesday by the Western Tidewater Regional Jail Authority. He will assume a vacancy created by the December retirement of Superintendent Jack Dewan.

Newton has been administrator of Cumberland County for the past seven years, where he has managed 190 sworn civilian personnel and a 476-bed facility with no prisoner escapes.

Noted accomplishments at Cumberland County Jail include:

nHaving the facility become the first in Maine to get accreditation by the American Correctional Association;

nDeveloping and directing the first master correction officer program in the state;

nRedesigning the personnel structure, resulting in savings of more than $300,000 annually;

nIncreasing the number of inmate programs being delivered.

Before working at Cumberland, Newton held several security and police-related positions in the U.S. Army.

Newton and his wife, Becky, have three children.