On Friday, Sheriff Patrick Labat of Fulton County will hold a news conference to discuss the current condition of the Fulton County Jail.
The county commission has made a decision this week to renovate the jail with a budget of $300 million instead of constructing a new one that would cost $1.7 billion.
At 11 a.m., Labat is set to conduct a news conference to share his thoughts on the decision. WSB-TV’s breaking news app and WSBTV.com will live stream the event, as reported by Channel 2 Action News.
Back in 2023, a feasibility study revealed that the jail’s structure and overcrowding were nothing new. The study stated that the jail was unsafe, obsolete, and deteriorated due to overcrowding.
In 2023, Channel 2 Action News reported that the jail had experienced power outages, inmates breaking holes through walls, attacks on staff by inmates, several incidents of inmate-on-inmate violence, and unfortunately, deaths of inmates in the custody of the sheriff’s office.
The board’s decision to renovate instead of rebuilding was addressed in a statement sent by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday.
According to the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, the jail feasibility study they funded and commissioned has concluded that the Rice Street Jail must be replaced. The jail has been plagued with challenges for decades, and the situation is deteriorating rapidly. Sheriff Labat has been vocal about the urgent need for improved conditions at the jail, and we fully support the findings of the study.
