Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat keeps asking for a new county jail even after a consent decree agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice because repair and maintenance efforts don’t go far enough to fix the inhumane conditions, Fulton County District 3 Commissioner Dana Barrett said.
Labat and Fulton County Commission Chairman Rob Pitts said in separate announcements on Jan. 3 that the county and the sheriff reached a consent decree agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve the federal agency’s investigation into the Fulton County Jail.
But Barrett told Rough Draft that the facility’s design and size aren’t adequate to meet consent decree mandates such as separating the most vulnerable populations.
She said the county has been under a consent decree before and made similar jail improvement efforts, but ended up back in the same situation.
“Then and now, these plans for repair and maintenance are the equivalent of putting a Band-Aid on a broken leg,” Barrett said.
The county spent $2 million on a jail feasibility study in 2022 and 2023 that recommended a new facility, with only Pitts opposing the idea. However, when the $2 billion cost was projected, Commissioners Bob Ellis and Bridget Thorne, and Vice Chair Khadijah Abdur-Rahman changed their minds, Barrett said.
Labat’s office said in its Jan. 3 news release that the DOJ filed a complaint related to its civil rights investigation into the jail. The release said Labat agreed to the consent order, which was the result of negotiations with the DOJ and the Fulton County Attorney’s Office. The agreement was presented to the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Georgia on Jan. 3.
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Ryan K. Buchanan announced the investigation’s findings on Nov. 14. The 97-page report said poor conditions at the Fulton County Jail violate incarcerated persons’ constitutional and statutory rights and have led to injury and death.
Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts said during a press briefing on Friday that the commissioners and county administration will collaborate with the Department of Justice (DOJ), the sheriff’s office, and other partners to ensure that the terms of the agreement are implemented.
The commission committed to $300 million in jail facility improvements in 2024 and approved a project management contract to make a facility assessment, Pitts said during the briefing. A $13 million “blitz” repair program at the Rice Street facility began in 2023 and is on track to finish in the next 90 days. Light replacements, fixing cell doors and locks, painting, plumbing repairs and resealing concrete walls are among the repairs. Commissioners allotted another $3.2 million for critical jail repairs at Rice Street in August 2024 to upgrade fire alarms, replace kitchen and laundry equipment, and modernizing all elevators.
The county also will continue its collaboration with justice partners to reduce the jail population, Pitts said.
“If you read the Department of Justice study, you’ll note one thing that’s crystal clear, the majority of their findings relate to the management of the jail and not the physical plant for which Fulton County government is responsible for,” Pitts said during the press briefing.
“While we recognize the board’s authority to make decisions about its facility, failure to modernize the building to include locks, additional onsite maintenance, and a complete retool of plumbing, undermines the goals of the proposed consent order,” the sheriff’s office release said.
Pitts said during the press briefing that the DOJ investigation did not call for a new $2 billion jail. He also said it wasn’t part of the consent decree.
The sheriff’s office said the proposed consent decree includes performing a staffing analysis. Recruitment and retention plans are highlighted. The North Annex Jail Facility in Alpharetta will close by July 1, with its resources redirected.
To control the perimeter and prevent contraband from getting inside the jail, the sheriff’s office plans to modernize surveillance equipment inside and outside including the use of anti-drone technology, additional fencing and cell phone interdiction technology.
The jail investigation found people incarcerated in the jail suffered harm from pest infestation and malnourishment. Victims included Lashawn Thompson, who was found dead and covered in bedbugs in September 2022.
The consent decree states that pest control services will be expanded and weekly clinical-grade cleaning of housing areas will be performed. Secure storage for cleaning supplies will be made and a partnership with the Center for Disease Control will be sought to help deal with environmental hazards.
Policies and procedures will be reviewed on use of force and gang prevention. Advanced training will be sought.
An inmate orientation plan will be made to inform newly booked inmates on how to report violence, sexual abuse, and unsafe conditions in the jail, without fear of retaliation.