Fulton sheriff pushes back against plan to upgrade deteriorating jail instead of replacing it

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat will talk about the state of the Fulton County Jail during a news conference on Friday.

This week, the county commission decided to renovate the jail for $300 million instead of building a new one for $1.7 billion.

Labat will hold a news conference at 11 a.m. to discuss the decision.

The issue of overcrowding and the structure of the jail itself is not new. A 2023 feasibility study found that the jail is “obsolete, overcrowded, deteriorated, and unsafe.”

On Thursday, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office sent a statement about the board’s decision to renovate instead of rebuild.

“We stand by the findings of the jail feasibility study and commissioned and funded by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners: the Rice Street Jail needs to be replaced. The decades-long challenges plaguing the jail are worsening day by day. Sheriff Labat has been very transparent about the critical need for better conditions at the jail.”