A federal investigation found that conditions at Atlanta’s Fulton County Jail violate constitutional and statutory rights, citing widespread violence, contraband, and neglect.

The Department of Justice’s report highlights frequent killings, stabbings, and drug use, with jail staff sometimes complicit.

The jail has seen over 1,000 assaults in 2023, including 314 stabbings, far exceeding rates in comparable facilities.

Physical deterioration has enabled inmates to chisel through walls to attack others.

Notably, Lashawn Thompson, a mentally ill inmate, died in 2022 after being found in squalid conditions, sparking national outrage, The Guardian has reported.

Federal investigators demand reforms within 49 days or risk legal action.

Written by B.C. Begley