For Immediate Release November 4, 2004

Contacts: 

Courtland Reichman                                                  Sara Totonchi
King & Spalding LLP                                                Southern Center for Human Rights
404/572-4610 or CReichman@KSLAW.com             404/688-1202 or stotonchi@schr.org 

King & Spalding, Southern Center for Human Rights File Lawsuit
on Behalf of  Pre-Trial Detainees Forced to Pay “Room and Board”
at the Clinch County Jail

Inmates -- Many Poor and Not Convicted of a Crime --
Are Being Forced to Pay for Their Incarceration

ATLANTA and HOMERVILLE, GEORGIA, November 4, 2004 – Attorneys from King & Spalding LLP, a leading international law firm, and the Southern Center for Human Rights filed a federal class action lawsuit this week on behalf of individuals who are being forced to pay for their “room and board” at the Clinch County Jail in Homerville, Georgia.

King & Spalding is representing the plaintiffs pro bono.  The action was filed on November 2, 2004, and the federal Judge hearing the case has scheduled a preliminary injunction hearing on Friday, November 5 at 9:30am.

The defendants named in the suit are Clinch County, Georgia; Winston Peterson, Sheriff of Clinch County; and  Sissy Suggs, Deputy Sheriff of Clinch County. Without any legal authority, defendants force inmates at the Clinch County Jail (Jail) to pay $18 per day, resulting in fees of more than $4000 in some cases.  Prior to being released, inmates are required to sign a contract agreeing to pay this fee regardless of whether they have been convicted of a crime or whether they have the ability to pay.  If they do not pay, they may be picked up and incarcerated again.

“It’s like a debtors prison. They charge people who have not been convicted of any crime and are presumed innocent – and throw them back in jail if they don’t pay.  This is simply an abuse of authority and something that needs to be stopped,” said Courtland Reichman, the King & Spalding partner leading the firm’s representation of the plaintiffs. “By bringing this lawsuit, we hope to help the victims of this unlawful practice – many of whom cannot afford the fees – recoup the money they were wrongly forced to pay.”

One of the named plaintiffs, Willie Williams, was in the Jail for nine months. Despite having posted bond and being free to leave under the law, Mr. Williams was not allowed to leave until he signed a promissory note agreeing to pay the Jail $4608 and had his mother show up with an initial payment of $100 in cash.  Mr. Williams, who has held a job as a forklift operator for the past 10 years, currently brings home $75 per week after paying his child support obligations. Yet he is expected to pay $20 per week towards his jail bill.  To date, Mr. Williams has not been convicted of any crime. 

The other plaintiff, Mickle Jackson, spent three months in the Jail.  He was charged $1,415 for his stay there.  Mr. Jackson lives on a fixed income of $562 per month in Supplemental Security Income.  His mother, also on SSI, has paid hundreds of dollars towards her son’s jail bill.  Mr. Jackson, like Mr. Williams, has not been convicted of any crime.

The experiences of Mr. Williams and Mr. Jackson are not isolated instances.  It is the Jail’s policy and practice to charge inmates – including pre-trial detainees – for the cost of room and board.

“Many of the people affected by this practice have not been convicted of any crime; most are living well below the poverty level,” states Sarah Geraghty, attorney at the Southern Center for Human Rights who is representing the plaintiffs.  “What the Sheriff is doing is illegal.  He has no authority to charge this fee, and he certainly cannot throw people in jail for failing to pay it.”

To view the complaint, click here

Return to Center's Efforts to Protect Human Rights