Friends and relatives of three Gwinnett County Detention Center inmates who died while in custody last year gathered outside the jail Saturday afternoon to call for accountability and policy changes.
Corey Bryant, 22; Ian Longshore, 36; and Deion Strayhorn, 26, all died in the facility in 2021 while awaiting trial. Members of their families, along with representatives from the Georgia, DeKalb and Gwinnett chapters of the NAACP, organized the protest in hopes of changing how Gwinnett jail facilities are run to better ensure the safety of inmates awaiting trial.
“We the mothers are here to let everyone know that enough is enough. We intend to hold Gwinnett County accountable for the deaths of our sons and to correct the protocol for better inmate care,” said Tracy Ford Bryant, mother of Corey Bryant.
The families say that jail officials have not answered their questions or addressed their concerns. Allegations of drug trafficking between guards and inmates, negligence and poor staffing were a few of the grievances the families brought against the jail.
Strayhorn’s death in April 2021 was caused by a medical emergency, the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office reported at the time. Bryant and Longshore died in September 2021 after they were found unconscious at the jail.
In a statement given during the event, the sheriff’s office said that an internal investigation into how the inmates died was conducted, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is also looking into the deaths. They also extended their condolences to the families.
Sherry Strayhorn spoke about the medical emergency that caused her son Deion Strayhorn’s death. “Each and every person in the Gwinnett County jail deserves and should be provided adequate medical care,” she said. “Our objective here today is to see that this doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
Those gathered demanded accountability from the sheriff’s office for the in-custody deaths, a review of the jail’s conditions and for facility polices and procedures to be changed.
All three of the families have retained lawyers and are in the process of taking legal action against the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office.
“I wish I could tell my son that I did not stop fighting, and that I’m continuing to fight today,” Kimberly Longshore, Ian Longshore’s mother, said at the Saturday protest.
“I’m just seeking justice and answers.”
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