ATLANTA – State Representative Josh McLaurin (D-Sandy Springs), along with the other first-term members of the Georgia House Democratic Caucus, today sent a letter to Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) Commissioner Timothy C. Ward to call for an investigation into allegations of a breakdown in order and safety in Georgia’s prisons.
“We have received reports that, during COVID-19, conditions in Georgia’s prisons have deteriorated to a point that is unlawful and morally unconscionable,” said Rep. McLaurin. “Rioting, homicides, and suicides have increased dramatically. We are calling on Commissioner Ward to demonstrate that he is responding to these allegations, to show whether Georgia is complying with the U.S. Constitution and doing everything it can to prevent violence and disorder in our prisons.”
The letter describes allegations from the Southern Center for Human Rights, including understaffing at the GDC, which these House members believe has allowed violence and disorder to increase in Georgia’s prison system. The letter also references the risk that the increase in violence and disorder means Georgia is violating the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In the 1994 case Farmer v. Brennan, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that “[b]eing violently assaulted in prison is simply not part of the penalty that criminal offenders pay for their offenses against society.” The signatory members urge an immediate and complete response by the Commissioner regarding these allegations.
*Editor’s Note: The letter to Commissioner Ward is attached.
Representative Josh McLaurin represents the citizens of District 51, which includes portions of Fulton County. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Judiciary Non-Civil and Special Rules committees.
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