State lawmakers investigate violent conditions in Georgia prisons and Fulton Prison • Georgia Recorder

Georgia's state prisons and the Fulton County Jail were the focus of debate Friday before legislative committees tasked with developing recommendations for addressing problems resulting from overcrowded and outdated prison facilities.

The Georgia Senate Department of Corrections Investigation Committee held its first hearing this month, hearing from the state agency's top officials about the challenges of running a large prison system where severe staff shortages, deteriorating buildings and the smuggling of contraband have led to increased violence among inmates, correctional officers and other prison staff.

State Department of Corrections officials told lawmakers at a hearing Friday that the agency needs to upgrade aging prisons with more single-bed cells to eliminate a common cause of violent attacks between inmates.

They also discussed the need to dismantle a complex system of drones that deliver cell phones and other illegal contraband to inmates and to stop the spread of violent street gangs present in Georgia's prisons throughout the state.

Tyrone Oliver, director of corrections, said there is ample evidence that there are fewer violent conflicts among inmates who live in solitary cells. He pointed to the lower number of reported incidents at Smith State Prison in Glennville since it recently moved a larger proportion of inmates to solitary cells. That makes it easier to manage the tensions that can lead to conflict with a fellow inmate, Oliver said.

“If you look at our violence and most of our murders, we see that they take place in double cells,” Oiver said.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on August 15 that analysis of 2024 data found that the agency responsible for Georgia's prisons is on track to have the deadliest year in its history, with at least 24 murders and a total of 156 deaths reported in the first six months.

Days before the prison hearing, federal prosecutors announced charges against two dozen current and former Georgia inmates on charges of operating a drone network to smuggle drugs, cell phones and other contraband into state prisons.

The cost of building a new, state-of-the-art and secure facility can be high if Georgia's aging prison complexes are to be replaced or renovated. The Justice Department reported June data showing the total population is approaching pre-pandemic levels: There are about 35,000 inmates in state prisons and nearly 50,000 inmates in several private prisons, halfway centers and other Justice Department facilities.

Oliver said he is optimistic that the security situation and other issues will improve with ongoing construction on a roughly 1,500-bed complex to be built next to the existing Washington County State Prison. The new facility will fill some of the void left by the closure of Georgia State Prison in Reidsville in 2022.

Several high-ranking Republican lawmakers have greater interest in recent months about the problems in the state prison system and in local detention centers.

In June, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced the state's partnership with Guidehouse Inc. for a year-long investigation into the Georgia Department of Corrections. Republican House Speaker Jon Burns announced in July the creation of a budget subcommittee to examine the funding needed to make Georgia's correctional facilities safer.

In the state Senate, the Department of Corrections Investigation Committee is led by Republican Senators John Albers and Randy Robertson, a retired Muscogee County Sheriff's Office officer. Both have had a lot of influence in passing criminal justice legislation in recent years. They agreed that solitary confinement is the safest way to house inmates in prison facilities, especially those with large numbers of serious criminals.

“When we talk about solitary confinement security, a lot of kumbaya groups nod and say that's the best thing in the world, we love it,” Robertson said. “And then we tell them that in order to build these, we need to cut some of these feel-good wraparound programs and redirect the state funds to our corrections department so we can build safe facilities for their neighbors, their friends, their families and their loved ones.”

Criminal justice reform advocates such as the Southern Center for Human Rights, the ACLU of Georgia and others have criticized Republican majority lawmakers for supporting stricter bail requirements and harsher mandatory sentences. They argue that the recent legislation is a trend toward reversing reforms that emphasize rehabilitation over incarceration and were pushed by former Republican Gov. Nathan Deal.

Albers and Robertson released a draft report from a Fulton Prison subcommittee that included recommendations on how local authorities could improve conditions at the detention center and reform the criminal justice system.

The Fulton County Jail Subcommittee released a report with 17 recommendations to improve a system that keeps too many inmates in jail indefinitely.

The subcommittee was formed following a Series of stabbings against prisoners and the seizure of an inmate's weapons cache, providing insight into the horrific conditions in a west Atlanta prison that is perpetually overcrowded, understaffed and underfunded.

Albers said county officials are making progress by reducing Fulton's overcrowded jail population by about 1,000 people. He thanked Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat, prosecutors, public defenders, judges and other Fulton officials for offering programs such as night court that expedite the processing of accused offenders.

They described a dysfunctional relationship between Fulton law enforcement, the County Commission and law enforcement officials that hindered the timely processing of cases of those incarcerated at the Rice Street Jail.

The report recommended that Atlanta authorities transfer control of their prison to Fulton so that inmates there can be protected from potentially dangerous conditions. The report also encouraged Fulton commissioners to allocate several hundred million dollars to build a new prison to replace the aging Rice Street facility.

In addition, it recommended that the Fulton District Attorney's Office work with the public defender to expedite the release of people arrested for non-violent, non-sexually motivated offenses. The report also suggests that a new prison advisory board be formed and that the county hire a maintenance crew to address extensive repairs at Rice Prison.