City’s detention center not the answer for Fulton jail
In the wake of a devastating Department of Justice report and the collapse of a $2 billion new jail plan, the permanent acquisition of the Atlanta City Detention Center by Fulton County is increasingly being pushed.
As a primary care provider who sees patients directly out of the jail system, it is clear that space is not the problem. As the DOJ report noted, understaffing remains at the root of many issues, and a culture of neglect and abuse permeates much of Fulton’s legal system, from the poorly managed jail to the inefficient legal system to the thousands of individuals booked on misdemeanors better served through diversion. The jail population has considerably dropped following the implementation of some reforms. Notably, there is no plan for and essentially no way that an understaffed Fulton sheriff’s department could staff ACDC.
For years ACDC was slated for conversion to a community center. Atlanta should fulfill this promise and reject further involvement in Fulton’s carceral conundrum.
MARK SPENCER, ATLANTA
Public has right to know abortion ban effects
Georgia’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee determined that two women died recently as a result of the state’s abortion law. This is information that the public should have. Laws have consequences that people should know about, assuming this is a democracy. When, if ever, was this information to have been made available to the public isn’t clear, but it was leaked to ProPublica.
Now, the entire committee has been sacked over the leak. Georgia’s maternal and infant mortality rates are shamefully high, so this committee’s work was important. Obviously, they were expected to have stayed in line and meekly submitted their findings to the powers that be so the information could be buried if that was politically expedient. Authorities dislike having things out in the open because it’s simpler to maintain control when people are in the dark.
DEAN POIRIER, LILBURN
