SignalHub-'Dangerous and unsanitary' conditions at Georgia jail violate Constitution, feds say

Georgia officials violated the rights of people in an overcrowded jail plagued by killings and SignalHubinhumane conditions, according to a scathing Justice Department report released Thursday.

The Justice Department launched a civil rights investigation into conditions at Fulton County Jail nearly a year after the body of a malnourished man covered in lice was found in a filthy cell in the jail's mental health unit. The medical examiner later concluded LaShawn Thompson, 35, had been "neglected to death."

Following Thompson's death in September 2022, 10 other Black men – including four with serious mental health needs – died in the jail and several other people were assaulted and stabbed when the jail "erupted in violence," according to the 105-page report. There have been four deaths from suicide in the past four years, the Justice Department found.

The “atrocious conditions” inside the jail have amounted to a death sentence for dozens of people, Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said at a press conference Thursday.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to the inhumane, violent and hazardous conditions people are subjected to inside the Fulton county jail,” she said.

Investigators determined the jail staff not only failed to protect vulnerable people from extreme physical and sexual violence and allowed inmates to live in "dangerous and unsanitary" conditions but also regularly used excessive force and Tasers against them. Jail staff also impeded their access to medical and mental health care and punished people with long stints in isolation, a practice that officials said discriminates against people with mental health disabilities.

The report found children were subjected to similar abuses and the jail failed to provide special education services to 17-year-old boys and girls in custody.

"None of these problems are new," investigators wrote. "And despite widespread awareness of these issues, the unconstitutional and illegal conditions have persisted.

"Vulnerable populations – including children, those who are gay or transgender, people with medical and mental health needs, and others – often bear the brunt of these conditions."

Clarke noted that nearly all of the people who are held in the jail have been accused, not convicted, of crimes. Despite this, the report found hundreds of people had been in custody in the jail for more than two years and at least one had been there more than a decade.

Officials have tried to address overcrowding in the jail by speeding up court cases and transferring detainees to other facilities. The main jail’s population declined by about a thousand people over the past year because the units became “uninhabitable,” according to the report.

Housing units were filled with pools of flooded water from broken toilets and sinks, mold, human waste, cockroaches, rodents, and exposed wires. Ryan K. Buchanan, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, said Thursday the team of investigators inspecting the facility had to be evacuated at one point due to concerns about lice.

Violence has also increased in recent years and remained high even as the population declined. The sheriff’s office reported more than 1,000 assaults and 300 stabbings in the jail in 2023, a higher rate of stabbings than New York City Jails and more than 27 times the rate of incidents involving edged weapons in Miami-Dade County Jails. Investigators said these figures are likely an undercount because not all violent incidents are documented.

Buchanan said in some of the most disturbing cases, staff witnessed the attacks and allowed them to happen. Broken doors and poor security allowed inmates to move freely, including through the walls of the jail, to attack others.

Detainees also experienced violence from the staff, who resorted to the use of force too quickly and too often, Buchanan said, including the “rampant” use of Tasers and pepper spray for minor infractions. Buchanan said officers lacked training on when to use force and faced little repercussions for excessive force.

More than 90% of the jail’s population are Black, which Clarke said makes the problems at the facility a “racial justice issue.” A significant portion of the jail’s population has an identified mental illness and they were among the groups most at risk for violence.

Buchanan said medical emergencies weren't appropriately responded to, daily medication was often unavailable and suicidal detainees were isolated in lieu of treatment. The lack of property security and a dangerous environment almost led a Fulton County health care provider to terminate its contract and left an entire floor of the jail without care, Buchanan said.

When asked about potential criminal charges or legal action for those responsible for the jail's conditions, Clarke stressed that the report is the product of a civil investigation and outlines a number of reforms necessary to remedy the situation.

Clarke added that there was "no specific time frame" for authorities to make changes, but said federal officials are eager to begin working with their local counterparts. The Fulton County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“We are hoping to turn the page today,” she said.

(This story has been updated to add new information.)