Back in the U.S., the Justice Department has opened an investigation into conditions at Atlanta-area jails following the death of another prisoner. Fulton County officials say 19-year-old Noni Battiste-Kosoko was found unresponsive in her cell in the Atlanta City Detention Center last Tuesday. She was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant and held without bond. This follows the death last year of 35-year-old Lashawn Thompson, a Black man who was being held in the Fulton County Jail’s psychiatric wing, where his family says he was “eaten alive” by insects and bedbugs in his cell. Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke says the probe will look into reports of deplorable conditions in Fulton County jails, lack of access to medical and mental healthcare, and the use of excessive force by staff.
DOJ Opens Civil Rights Probe of Atlanta-Area Jails After Deaths of Prisoners
HeadlineJul 17, 2023