Jail officials in Georgia's most populous county violate the constitutional rights of people in their custody by failing to protect them from violence, using excessive force and holding them in filthy and unsafe conditions, U.S. Justice Department officials said Thursday while threatening to get the courts involved if corrective action isn't taken quickly.
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.
