The Department of Justice must have been just as disgusted as the rest of the world upon seeing the images of a Fulton County inmate whose body was covered in insect bites. According to CNN, the DOJ is investigating the dilapidated and unsanitary conditions of the jail.
The Department announced Thursday they will launch a civil rights investigation into the conditions in which inmates at the Atlanta jail are held as well as their access to mental and physical health care. The calls for a deeper look into the jail’s conditions came after the death of LaShawn Thompson, whose family claimed was eaten alive by bedbugs and left to die in filthy conditions. His death was ruled a homicide caused by neglect and various mental illnesses after jailers didn’t provide adequate health care.
Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump reacted to the news of the investigation saying he hopes the DOJ confirms the “clear pattern of negligence and abuse” that occurs in Fulton County Jail.
Read more about the DOJ’s investigation from CNN:
At the time of his death, Thompson had been in custody on a misdemeanor assault charge since June 2022, Harper has said. Thompson was housed in the psychiatric wing of the jail because he suffered from mental health issues, per the attorney.
The Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section, which is conducting the investigation with the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, will also probe whether the county and sheriff’s office “discriminate against persons with psychiatric disabilities inside the jail,” a news release said.
“Detention or incarceration in jail should not include exposure to unconstitutional living conditions that place lives in jeopardy or risks serious harm or assaults,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke.
She’s absolutely right. The DOJ’s in-custody death report from 2019-2022 undercounted the amount of jail deaths by 39 percent. A significant amount of people lose their lives before they even get before a judge and jury to decide if they’re actually guilty. There may be more LaShawn’s who were never accounted for.