Media Advisory: Southern Center for Human Rights Opposes Dickens Administration Jail Lease Legislation

WHO: Attorneys and advocates from the Southern Center for Human Rights, a non-profit public interest law firm.

WHAT: A press conference to discuss the Southern Center’s opposition to Councilmember Michael Julian Bond’s proposed legislation, which would authorize the City of Atlanta to enter into a lease agreement with Fulton County for 700 to 1300 jail beds at the Atlanta City Detention Center, preempting the long-planned closure and repurposing of the jail into the John Lewis Center for Equity and Wellness. 

WHERE: In front of Atlanta City Hall, Mitchell Street Entrance 

WHEN: Monday, August 8, 2022, 11:00 AM 

WHY: The proposed lease of beds at ACDC to Fulton County is purportedly in response to Fulton County’s chronic jail overcrowding problems, but is regarded by community organizers—particularly those in the Community over Cages Alliance, led by Women on the Rise—as a poorly veiled attempt to preempt the closure and repurposing of the Atlanta City Detention Center. In 2019, then-Councilmember Andre Dickens authored the legislation authorizing the formation of the Task Force to Re-Imagine the Atlanta City Detention Center, with the goal of providing resources and services for Atlantans in need. SCHR attorneys served as members of the Task Force, which convened for a year to offer holistic public safety recommendations to the city. SCHR also has a long history of litigating against Fulton County’s jails for various issues, among them endemic violence and abysmal medical care.  

Press contact: Hannah Riley; [email protected]; 470-867-7530.