For years, debate over how to address overcrowding and improve “inhumane” conditions at the troubled Rice Street jail has fueled public arguments and even a lawsuit among Fulton County commissioners and the sheriff’s office.
Those tensions exploded once again during the latest board meeting. That happened after Fulton Commission Chairman Robb Pitts introduced a so-called “five-point plan” to reduce the jail’s population — without consulting the man who actually runs the jail, Sheriff Patrick Labat.
Several other commissioners, including District 5’s Marvin Arrington Jr., allege they were also not made aware of the plan before Pitts brought it forward for a vote at the eleventh hour.
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