Harrowing encounters with inmates in the Fulton and Clarke County jails this month have sent jailers to hospital, underscoring the dangers they face on the job.
On April 7, detention officer Brooklyn Unitas was distributing meals to inmates in the Fulton County Jail when James Dosen, 51, allegedly attempted to push her over a second-floor railing before knocking her to the ground and biting off part of her ear, according to jail and court records. Other inmates came to Unitas’ rescue; orderlies and a jail sergeant managed to pry Dosen off of a bleeding Unitas, records say.
Dosen, who was charged with aggravated assault and battery against a law enforcement officer, was in jail on a misdemeanor battery charge accusing him of pepper spraying someone in the face on Jan. 27. He spoke gibberish, according to the records, when jailers tried to interview him about the alleged attack on Unitas.
Dosen’s attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.
Unitas, who was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for treatment and is preparing to undergo physical therapy for a broken elbow she sustained in the attack, is to be recognized with a proclamation during Wednesday’s Fulton Commission Meeting. She said Friday she feels honored by the recognition and plans to return to her job.
Credit: Courtesy of Brooklyn Unitas
Credit: Courtesy of Brooklyn Unitas
“It is not necessarily a fun job to have but it is a necessary one, so I feel very appreciated that someone has recognized that I went through something traumatic for the job that I do,” said Unitas, 25, a Kennesaw State University graduate student who grew up in Chicago.
“The floor that I work on is the mental health floor and a lot of those guys aren’t able to physically take care of themselves or mentally understand what is going on. So I always like to make sure that each and every one of them is fed properly.”
During an interview at the jail this week, Fulton Sheriff Patrick Labat called Unitas a “true shero.” When he visited her at the hospital, Labat said, she told him she wasn’t sure if she had finished serving meals in the jail before the attack and added, “I just want to take care of my inmates.”
“She is absolutely one of the bravest young ladies I know,” Labat said.
On April 21, a male inmate serving a sentence for third degree arson allegedly attacked a female sergeant in the Clarke County Jail in Athens, wielding a weapon he created by putting bars of soap in a sock, the Clarke sheriff’s office said. He struck her repeatedly in the head and arms and unsuccessfully attempted to pull her Taser from its holster, the office said.
As a fellow detention officer sought to help her, the inmate struck him and knocked his Taser out of his hand. The inmate grabbed that Taser and attempted to fire it at him before other officers arrived and restrained him.
The injured jailers were treated at a local hospital and released. As spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Office declined to identify those involved and said her office was looking into whether the alleged assailant would be charged.
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