Inmate dead after incarceration at Georgia jail under federal investigation

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.

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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.

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Contributing: The Associated Press