Fulton County Jail Subcommittee Makes 17 Recommendations – Georgia

(The Center Square) – A Georgia Senate subcommittee investigating the Fulton County Jail has issued a report with 17 recommendations to improve conditions at the facility, including a suggestion that Fulton County Superior Court judges should carry complete case files.

The report concludes a months-long investigation of the Fulton County Jail by the Senate Public Safety Subcommittee, and its recommendations could help guide legislative action when lawmakers return to Atlanta next year.

During a press conference Friday morning, State Senator Randy Robertson (R-Cataula) said dysfunction at the county or state level is often the result of officials forgetting who their boss is: the taxpayers who want to live in safe communities.

“And for that to work properly, the sheriff has to get along with the county commission, which has to get along with the judiciary, which has to get along with the district attorney, and each of those people has to do their jobs the way they're required to do them, the way the law requires them to do them,” Robertson added. “And it's no longer an argument that I'm a constitutional officer when it comes to why things aren't getting done.”

The subcommittee met seven times between November 2023 and May 2024. Meetings focused on issues ranging from health care in the prison system to funding for the Fulton County District Attorney's Office and its budget and staff.

The Fulton County Commissioners should establish an advisory council with members representing the county commission, the sheriff's office, the district attorney, the clerk of court and the superior court.

The subcommittee recommended that Fulton County commissioners establish a task force to identify duplications in services, technology and personnel in the criminal justice system. The subcommittee also recommended that the Fulton County District Attorney and Public Defender establish policies to expedite non-violent and non-sexual crime cases and that the District Attorney engage a third party to conduct an audit to streamline personnel, processes and outdated technology.

In a statement to The Center Square released Friday, Sheriff Patrick “Pat” Labat said he welcomed the review and has been “cooperative and transparent” in providing information to the subcommittee and the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.

“These findings reinforce my belief that the Sheriff's Office and the BOC should not be at odds, but rather should work together for the benefit of the inmates of the Fulton County Jail and our entire Fulton County community,” Labat said.

“…We are one of many spokes in the wheel of the criminal justice system. Often times we get caught in a bind when law enforcement brings residents to us and then we have to wait for them to go through the court process,” Labat added. “In the meantime, we are dealing with decades-old infrastructure and a more violent arrestee. The decaying facility puts the lives of residents and our team at risk.”

A spokesman for the Fulton County District Attorney's Office did not respond to a request for comment.