ATLANTA — A two-year investigation into the Fulton County Jail found the conditions inside are "unconstitutional, unlawful, and dangerous."
The Department of Justice announced disturbing revelations related to an investigation into the Fulton County Jail on Thursday, an announcement that comes after years of controversy regarding conditions inside the facility.
The Fulton County Sheriff's Office doesn't adequately protect jail inmates from violence by other detainees, including stabbings, sexual abuse and killings, federal officials contend in a lengthy report that details alleged abuses. Vulnerable populations, including people who are gay, transgender, young or have with serious mental illness, are particularly at risk from the violence, which causes physical injury and long-lasting trauma, the report says.
Those who have spent time behind the jail's walls know the conditions firsthand. Ladavious McNair is one of them. 11Alive spoke to him last Thursday, nearly a week after he was released after being wrongly arrested.
"Thirty days, thirty days. What I realized was that Rice Street location is pretty intense, so when I say 30 days, it felt like a year," McNair said in his first sit-down interview.
It didn't take much time for him to realize the conditions were not just unfavorable -- but down right dangerous. The 32-year-old was just released on Nov. 1 after a judge ruled he was wrongly arrested by Atlanta Police for a 2023 road rage shooting he didn't do. The man accused has the same name.
"I never knew inmates are really going through a lot. It's a lot of things in there, and I didn't understand that before," McNair said.
His experience wasn't just traumatic, but it changed his life. He says it felt like he had no rights.
"I ate rice and two slices of bread for dinner. I've been denied water. 'Not just me, many other inmates as well, because they say, you know, you don't deserve water. Water is a privilege. I've seen inmates literally taking their cup, dipping it in the toilet and drinking the water. These are toilets that haven't even been cleaned. I've seen people getting jumped, people getting shanked, people are getting raped, McNair said.
For him, every day was a fight. He was doing everything he could to get out and see his family, knowing he was innocent.
"How do I survive this? Because I don't want to die in here," McNair said.
But despite his experience and the DOJ's report, both Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat and Chairman Robb Pitts say they are happy with the improvements made to the jail so far and their plan for it's future.
"We've been anticipating the DOJ report, and we are certainly in a space now that we are happy that is come out," Labat said hours after the report was made public.
Labat, who took office in 2021 and was reelected last week, has consistently raised concerns about overcrowding, dilapidated infrastructure and staffing shortages at county lockups. He has pushed county leaders to build a new jail, which they have so far been unwilling to do. When the federal investigation was launched, he said he welcomed it and was prepared to cooperate fully.
"We will have to comply with whatever the Justice Department recommends, and that's what we're in the process of doing now," Pitts said.
Pitts said he shares concerns about what was outlined, adding he and Labat would be working together with the DOJ to make adjustments, and that a plan to address issues in nine of 11 housing units should be completed by the end of 2024. He also said the board has approved about $300 million to fully address needs at the Fulton County Jail. When it comes to the question of getting a new building, that step won't be taken yet.