News from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia district attorney warns prison conditions threaten public safety In an image captured from a social media post, Shane Tassi is with two other young men, all wearing white shirts and bright orange pants marked as Georgia Department of Corrections uniforms. Tassi’s in the middle, brazenly displaying a homemade shank and making a gang gesture …
Morning, y’all! The “cooling” trend continues today, with high temperatures expected to hover around 90 degrees. – Don’t forget it’s Election Day: Plenty of important local races are in runoffs, from school boards to the U.S. House. Find what’s on your ballot with the AJC-Atlanta Civic Circle voter guide — and stay tuned to AJC.com …
Gun violence comes to a Georgia prison: Inmate fatally shoots food service worker, then kills himself In an extraordinary breach of security, a Georgia state prison inmate shot and killed an Aramark food service employee Sunday at Smith State Prison in Glennville. Jaydrekus Hart shot the employee while working in the prison kitchen at 4:30 …
Georgia officials won’t release information on how prisoners are dying With Georgia prisons on pace to set yet another grim record for homicides, the Department of Corrections has decided to no longer issue reports on how its inmates are dying. After years of providing monthly mortality reports that often included the initial manner of death, …
Georgia prisoner sentenced to die wants firing squad, not lethal injection A death row inmate who fatally shot a man while fleeing from a bank robbery in Gwinnett County wants to become the first person in Georgia’s modern history to be legally executed by firing squad. Michael Nance, 62, appeared before a federal judge in …
Two high-ranking Ga. prison employees accused in sex cases Two high-ranking state prison staff members, including a deputy warden, have been arrested following separate incidents in which they are accused of having sexual contact with female prisoners. Alonzo L. McMillian, the deputy warden for administration at Pulaski State Prison, and Russell Edwin Clark, a lieutenant …
Seven Georgia officers accused in contraband scheme run by Valdosta inmate Georgia prison officials were in the midst of a complex investigation focused on drones making contraband drops for inmates when they stumbled onto a separate conspiracy — a criminal scheme enabled by their own staff. While investigators were using wire taps aimed at discovering …
OPINION: The hellhole that is Georgia’s prison system screams for overhaul The state Senate this month authorized a committee to take a deep dive into Georgia’s murderous prison system. Just days later, the warden at Telfair State Prison got stabbed by an inmate during a shakedown by officials looking to unearth contraband in a dorm. …
Lawmakers eye a remake of the Georgia prison system With prison violence in Georgia at a crisis point, the state Senate has authorized a group of senators to take a fresh look at the Georgia Department of Corrections and identify ways to improve the troubled system. A new seven-member committee, approved unanimously by the Senate, …
Georgia prison medical provider cites millions in extra costs due to violence The medical provider for the Georgia prison system backed out of its contract with the Department of Corrections last year after incurring more than $30 million in unanticipated costs, most due to the rampant violence in the state’s prisons, records obtained by The …