A new coalition of criminal justice advocates is challenging Fulton County Board of Commissioners on the best way to address the humanitarian and overcrowding crises that have plagued the county jail for decades. The one thing both sides agree on is that there won’t be a brand new jail built at a cost of billions […]
Madeline Thigpen
Madeline Thigpen is Capital B Atlanta's criminal justice reporter.
Posted inHousing
Reimagining Bankhead Courts: Former Residents Weigh In
Atlanta Housing has extended the deadline for public input on a project to revitalize Bankhead Courts, a former public housing project in northwest Atlanta that the city demolished in 2011. The agency, which is Georgia’s largest housing authority, said in an announcement last week that the decision to push back the original June 7 deadline […]
Posted inCapital B Atlanta, Criminal Justice
Fulton County Commissioners Vote No on Sales Tax for New Jail
The Fulton County Commission on Wednesday voted 4-2 not to pass a motion that would’ve directed the office of county management to pursue a sales tax to pay for a new jail projected to cost about $2 billion.
Posted inPublic Safety
Should I Call 311 or 911?
Atlanta’s E911 system has faced public scrutiny in recent years for long wait times, but dialing 911 is still the quickest way to get the police or fire department dispatched to your location. While hiring more dispatchers is one part of the solution, the city has also said that non-emergency calls coming to 911 contributed […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
One Year After Her Death, Bre’Asia Powell Is Bringing Atlantans Together
One year after 16-year-old Bre’Asia Powell was shot and killed outside Benjamin E. Mays High School, her West Atlanta community held a peace rally Tuesday in her memory. As a majorette, basketball player, cheerleader, and volleyball player, Powell was well known and liked in her West Atlanta neighborhood, according to family and friends. “I just […]
Posted inCommunity Spotlight, Environmental Justice
West Atlanta Alliance Fights Pollution, Promotes Nature Access
Na’Taki Osborne Jelks spent much of her childhood in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in one of the many Black communities along an 85-mile stretch between the city and New Orleans known as “Cancer Alley.” She said growing up in an area wracked by industrial pollution and the health problems that come with it put her on […]
Posted inLocal Politics, Politics & Policy
What to Know Before You Vote for District Attorney
Democratic voters in Fulton County will choose between incumbent District Attorney Fani Willis and Christian Wise Smith, a former prosecutor and current criminal defense attorney, as their choice for the county’s DA for the next four years. The primary vote is happening against the backdrop of the high-profile RICO prosecutions against former President Donald Trump […]
Posted inAsk Capital B, Criminal Justice, Policing
Ask Capital B: How Fulton County Sheriff Candidates Say They’d Fix Jail Overcrowding
Voters in Fulton County will hit the polls on May 21 to choose a sheriff at a time when county officials are wrestling with overcrowding and poor conditions at jails — especially at the notorious Rice Street Jail, where 10 people died in custody last year and three have died so far this year. One […]
Posted inHigher Education, Incarceration
We Need More Prison Education Programs. But Is the Money There?
When Kimberley Pugh was released after a 13-year term in Habersham County’s Lee Arrendale State Prison, her college classes were the only thing that felt “normal” about the outside world. “Everything around me was in complete chaos, but I had to focus on my reading, my writing, and make sure I had all my assignments […]
Posted inPolicing
3 Key Takeaways from the ACLU’s Fulton Sheriff’s Town Hall
As the top law enforcement officer in the county, the Fulton County sheriff plays a vital role by operating the county’s jails, providing security to the courts and superior court judges, and managing a $146 million budget, among other duties. However, polling done by the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia shows that Fulton voters […]
