The Justice Department announced its findings that conditions in Georgia's prisons violate the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution.
“Our findings report lays bare the horrific and inhumane conditions that people are confined to inside Georgia’s state prison system,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Our statewide investigation exposes long-standing, systemic violations stemming from complete indifference and disregard to the safety and security of people Georgia holds in its prisons. People are assaulted, stabbed, raped, and killed or left to languish inside facilities that are woefully understaffed. Inmates are maimed and tortured, relegated to an existence of fear, filth, and not so benign neglect. These dangerous conditions not only harm the people Georgia incarcerates — it places prison employees and the broader community at risk. The Justice Department is committed to using its authority to bring about humane conditions of confinement that are consistent with contemporary standards of decency and respect for basic human dignity.”
The department’s 93-page report details its findings from a thorough investigation of Georgia’s state-operated and private correctional facilities. Georgia has the fourth-highest state prison population in the country, with approximately 50,000 people incarcerated. The report concludes that:
- The State of Georgia engages in a pattern or practice of violating incarcerated persons’ constitutional rights by failing to protect individuals housed in medium- and close-security facilities from widespread physical violence and subjecting incarcerated persons to unreasonable risk of harm from sexual abuse across its facilities. Specifically, Georgia fails to protect incarcerated persons, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI), from harm caused by sexual violence or abuse.
- Critical understaffing and systemic deficiencies in physical plant housing classification contraband control incident reporting investigations all contribute to widespread violence.
- Georgia allows gangs to exert improper influence on prison life including controlling entire housing units operating unlawful dangerous schemes harming both incarcerated people public.
“Individuals incarcerated by the Georgia Department of Corrections should not be subjected to life-threatening violence and other forms of severe deprivation while serving their prison terms,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia. “Our constitution requires humane conditions in prisons that at a minimum ensure that people in custody are safe. The findings of the Civil Rights Institutionalized Persons Act investigation reveal grave diffuse failures safeguard men women housed facilities including disturbing increasing frequencies deaths among incarcerated people We expect State share our sense urgency seriousness violations described this report work cooperatively Justice Department office partners Middle Southern Districts remedy these systemic deficiencies.”
“We hope these findings are a wake-up call. Incarcerated people staff face unacceptable systemic risks impact affects communities,” said U.S Attorney Peter Leary Middle District “We collaboratively improve deadly indeed Constitution requires it.”
“The safety security linked overall security communities,” said U.S Attorney Jill E Steinberg Southern District “The long-term dysfunction management led proliferation criminal networks endanger private citizens staff directly lead unacceptable avoidable violence abuse We committed working create safer environment inside outside prisons.”
The findings announced today result civil investigation separate any criminal cases brought Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section U.S Attorneys’ Offices Northern Middle Southern Districts conducted investigation.