The day after Fulton County commissioners decided to spend $1.2 billion on renovating the county jail and building a new facility next to it, Sheriff Patrick Labat called the decision “a political game of smoke and mirrors.
“This short-sighted thinking is a shining example of people who cannot, and will not, admit they were wrong,” Labat said Thursday in a statement. “They were wrong to turn a blind eye to the need for a new jail facility.
“It is clear their personal agendas and political grievances are being prioritized over public safety and human dignity.”
Labat pushed for a new jail for years, an idea the County Commission considered but scrapped last year, when commissioners instead solicited proposals to plan jail renovations and estimate costs for the new facility. At the time, the commission set an upper price limit of $300 million.
Sheriff’s office spokesperson Natalie Ammons told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday that Labat was made aware of the new plan Aug. 14, four days before County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts unveiled it at a Monday news conference.
“He was not consulted at all regarding this new plan,” Ammons said.
Credit: Steve Schaefer /
Credit: Steve Schaefer /
Fulton County staff and their consultants briefed Labat and his leadership staff on recommended options, county spokesperson Jessica Corbitt said.
She did not say when that briefing took place.
Labat was told that the county would continue to engage with his office after Wednesday’s vote, Corbitt said. That will begin as the county plans the project in more detail, she said.
“While Fulton County Government is responsible for building and funding the jail facility, collaboration with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office a critical step in this work,” Corbitt said in an email.
In the meantime, Corbitt said the county is continuing to invest in the Rice Street jail, including $13 million in “blitz” repairs that began two years ago.
After voting on the jail facility plan Wednesday, the County Commission also approved more than $8 million for supplemental staffing and double overtime, she said.
Labat has been at odds with the County Commission for years over his spending and leadership. He sued the county in June, accusing commissioners of instituting unnecessary bureaucracy that thwarted his ability to buy critical equipment.
The jail on Rice Street has been overcrowded since it opened in 1989, Labat said. The county’s project manager for jail improvements said Wednesday that the roof, interior finishes, plumbing, fire protection and electrical system are in critical condition.
Hours after the County Commission approved the facility plan, the jail flooded Wednesday night during a hard rain, which Labat said was a common occurrence.
Pipes often burst and leak, locks are often broken and the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system is outdated, Labat said.
Labat and Fulton County earlier this year entered a federal consent decree mandating improvements to jail conditions, which the government called unconstitutional and “abhorrent.”
A federal investigation found sheriff’s office employees failed to protect inmates’ safety, resorted to violence against detainees too often and used solitary confinement in discriminatory ways. The consent decree requires the sheriff’s office to improve physical facilities as well as practices that contribute to jail violence, which a federal prosecutor called “inextricably intertwined.”
County commissioners have said the jail’s problems are mostly the result of short staffing and Labat’s management.
The commission decided Wednesday to build the new facility for up to 1,800 inmates with medical, mental health and other special needs. Construction would end in 2030. Only then would the Rice Street jail be renovated, allowing its inmates to be moved into the new building and other facilities in the meantime.
Labat said the decision was “the equivalent to being in a burning building and voting to design a new fire station that will not open for five years.”
He did not respond to a question about what measures were needed for more immediate relief.
This story has been updated.
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