Current:Home > MarketsInmate dead after incarceration at Georgia jail under federal investigation -AssetTrainer
Inmate dead after incarceration at Georgia jail under federal investigation
View
Date:2025-04-13 14:47:01
A Georgia inmate who was found unresponsive in a medical unit cell at a jail currently under federal investigation died at a hospital soon after he was transferred, authorities said Saturday.
Medical personnel resuscitated Christopher Smith 34, after he was found at Fulton County Jail by a detention officer Thursday. He was later transported to Grady Memorial Hospital and pronounced dead early Friday, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
Smith had been in custody since Oct. 6, 2019, and was being held without bond on several unspecified felony and misdemeanor charges, the sheriff's office said. Authorities said the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
The incident comes after county officials approved a $4 million settlement earlier this month for the family of a man who died at Fulton County Jail in September 2022.
LASHAWN THOMPSON CASE:$4 million settlement for family of man who died covered in bug bites at Georgia jail
Federal probe after 2022 death
LaShawn Thompson, 35, was housed in the psychiatric wing of the Fulton County Jail after a June 2022 arrest on a misdemeanor battery charge in Atlanta. Local officials said Thompson had diagnosed mental health issues.
Three months later, he was found in his cell dehydrated and malnourished, and his body "was infested inside and out with insects," according to attorneys Ben Crump and Michael Harper. An independent autopsy later determined that Thompson died due to "severe neglect" from jail staff,
Attorney Ben Crump read through multiple portions of the report, which found Thompson had "innumerable" bug bites and was not receiving medication for schizophrenia at the time of his death. He also suffered from poor living conditions, poor grooming, dehydration, and rapid weight loss, according to the report released in May.
The coroner's report listed Thompson's cause of death as undetermined. The report said there were no obvious signs of trauma on Thompson's body, but his entire body was covered in bed bugs. It also noted a "severe bed bug infestation" in the cell.
Following Thompson’s death, county commissioners approved $5.3 million for inmate health tracking, cameras, and other jail upgrades in April. The incident also spurred the Department of Justice to open a civil investigation into Fulton County Jail earlier this year to determine whether there is a practice or pattern of constitutional violations against incarcerated people.
Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said the department will investigate living conditions, access to medical care and mental health care, use of excessive force by staff, and conditions that may give rise to violence between people incarcerated at the facility, as well as whether the jail discriminates against incarcerated people with psychiatric conditions.
The level of violence in the jail is "deeply concerning," she said. At one point in 2022, the jail averaged more than one stabbing per day, and a recent search by the sheriff's office uncovered more than 200 weapons inside the main facility, she said.
Incidents at Fulton County Jail
According to Clarke, there were three suspected homicides at the main jail last year, and, in one case, the victim's body was reportedly concealed for hours before being found. "Inmates are literally crafting shanks from the crumbling walls of the dilapidated facility," Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat said earlier this year.
Officials did not outline a timeline for the investigation, which is focused on the overall conditions rather than an individual case.
The department is investigating under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, Clarke said. Under the ADA, jail officials must provide access to services, benefits and programs to people with disabilities that is equal to what they would provide to people without disabilities, she said.
Approximately 87% of the Fulton County Jail population is Black, Clarke said.
"This is a racial justice issue," she said.
HEAT WAVES MAKING IT 'TORTURE':Most US states don't have universal air conditioning in prisons.
Contributing: The Associated Press
veryGood! (61)
Related
- At site of suspected mass killings, Syrians recall horrors, hope for answers
- Bear injures hiker in Montana's Glacier National Park; section of trail closed
- NASCAR 2024 playoffs at Bristol: Start time, TV, streaming, lineup for Night Race
- North Carolina’s governor vetoes private school vouchers and immigration enforcement orders
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- Upset alert for Miami, USC? Bold predictions for Week 4 in college football
- Jerome Oziel, therapist who heard Menendez brothers' confession, portrayed in Netflix show
- Ukrainian President Zelenskyy will visit a Pennsylvania ammunition factory to thank workers
- Arkansas State Police probe death of woman found after officer
- A Nevada Lithium Mine Nears Approval, Despite Threatening the Only Habitat of an Endangered Wildflower
Ranking
- The Grammy nominee you need to hear: Esperanza Spalding
- David Beckham shares what Lionel Messi wanted the most from his move to MLS
- Jerome Oziel, therapist who heard Menendez brothers' confession, portrayed in Netflix show
- Katy Perry Reveals How She and Orlando Bloom Navigate Hot and Fast Arguments
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Cards Against Humanity sues Elon Musk's SpaceX over land bought to curb Trump border wall
- NFL bold predictions: Who will turn heads in Week 3?
- Judge asked to cancel referendum in slave descendants’ zoning battle with Georgia county
Recommendation
Meet first time Grammy nominee Charley Crockett
See Khloe Kardashian’s Delicious Chocolate Hair Transformation
Diana Taurasi changed the WNBA by refusing to change herself
Civil War Museum in Texas closing its doors in October; antique shop to sell artifacts
Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom's Daughter Daisy Seemingly Makes Singing Debut in Song Wonder
The Eagles deploy pristine sound, dazzling visuals at Vegas Sphere kickoff concert: Review
Proof Hailey Bieber Is Feeling Nostalgic About Her Pregnancy With Baby Jack