FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Fulton County commissioners this week scrapped plans to build a new county jail, opting to renovate the facility instead, against the sheriff's longstanding wishes.
Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat spoke Friday morning about the decision. He continues to be vocal in arguing the need for a new jail, not renovations, is urgent.
"This project is really putting a band-aid on open-heart surgery," Labat said.
The sheriff said the building is not up to date, adding that the materials used to build it are no longer used. Labat said this goes hand in hand with the overcrowding issue at Fulton County's Rice Street Jail.
"We were overcrowded the day the building opened, in the 80s," Labat said, adding that though he's worked to address this issue, the jail does not have the capacity needed.
Labat went on to speak about the culture of jail, adding that conditions are not fair for inmates.
"When you treat people less than humans, that's what you get," Labat said. "If you treat people and give them the resources, they act accordingly."
He continued to discuss the jail's safety, stating that the locks were not even correctional grade. Labat even said that just last week, a drone flew to the jail, dropping off cellphones and cigarettes for inmates.
"It is just a matter of time before someone gets a more dangerous weapon in here," he said.
There have been numerous deaths at the jail in the last year, and reports on the deteriorating conditions inside the facility prompted a U.S. Department of Justice investigation last year, the results of which have yet to be announced.
Rewatch the press conference here:
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Back in December, commissioners were presented with an image of what the proposed nearly $2 billion facility might look like. While there was consensus on the need for a new jail, some commissioners argued the proposed facility was too large and expensive.
County officials initially paused the plans to build a new jail, citing a decrease in the county's inmate population and $13 million in repairs already made to the current facility, including improvements to cells, common areas and housing zones.
"The decision to renovate the jail just continues to kick the can down the road while the inmates entrusted to our care continue to pay the price for our inaction," District 3 Commissioner Dana Barrett said in a statement on Wednesday night.