A grand jury has decided against indicting six Clayton County Sheriff’s Office employees who struggled with a mentally ill jail inmate before he died last year.
The six faced charges of involuntary manslaughter, reckless conduct and violating their oaths as public officers following the death of Terry Lee Thurmond III, 38, of Hapeville. Court records do not show why the grand jury reached its decision.
The officers were trying to stop Thurmond from jumping from the second floor of the lockup, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Thurmond, who was tased during the struggle, died on Nov. 28 as result of homicide, according to the Clayton County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The jailers restrained him by “placing hands, knees and their weight” on him “while he was laying face down for about 10-15 minutes,” the Medical Examiner’s Office report says.
Minutes later, according to the report, Thurmond was found to be unresponsive. Thurmond — who had a history of bipolar, paranoid schizophrenia and hypertension — was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the report says.
Clayton District Attorney Tasha Mosley said she was disappointed by the grand jury’s conclusion “but we respect their decision after hearing all of the evidence.”
The Clayton Sheriff’s Office announced in December it had fired some of its employees following an investigation of Thurmond’s death, though it did not identify them.
Thurmond was charged with criminal trespass and taken to the Clayton County Jail after entering secure areas of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport without a ticket. An Atlanta police report said officers also found “a warrant out of Fulton County with extradition for probation violation” for Thurmond. He graduated from Tri-Cities High School in East Point and had three children.
Thurmond’s sister, Laterrel England, released a statement saying her family was heartbroken about the grand jury’s decision, adding: “The system is broken.”
“These officers collectively weighed at least 1,000 pounds and they sat on his back and neck until he was lifeless,” she said. “Where is the justice for his mother, siblings, and children? When will this madness cease?”
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