Justice Department finds Georgia is ‘deliberately indifferent’ to unchecked abuses at its prisons

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia prison officials are “deliberately indifferent” to unchecked deadly violence, widespread drug use, extortion and sexual abuse at state lockups, the U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday, threatening to sue the state if it doesn’t quickly take steps to curb rampant violations of prisoners’ Eighth Amendment protections against cruel punishment.

Allegations of violence and chaos laid out in a stark 93-page report are the result of a statewide civil rights investigation into Georgia prisons announced in September 2021. At the time, federal officials cited particular concern about stabbings, beatings and other violence in a system where an estimated 50,000 people are incarcerated.

“The leadership of the Georgia Department of Corrections has lost control of its facilities,” Ryan Buchanan U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, said during a Tuesday news conference about the findings. He described a system in which inmate gangs have “co-opted” administrative functions, including bed assignments.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke did not discuss possible legal action during the news conference in Atlanta. She said the Justice Department looked forward to working with Georgia officials to address the myriad problems.

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