A federal judge Friday dismissed a request to hold Fulton County in contempt for poor jail conditions after a human rights group agreed overcrowding and other problems have improved substantially in recent months.
The Southern Center for Human Rights, which requested the contempt motion last year, joined the county in asking U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash Jr. to dismiss the motion. Both parties cited Fulton’s progress in keeping inmates off the floor, in replacing faulty locks and in beefing up staffing at the Rice Street jail.
But the litigation will continue, and the court will continue to monitor jail conditions. Though staffing has improved, it’s still not adequate, according to court documents. On Friday Thrash gave the county until December to comply with minimum staffing levels previously ordered by the court.
The Southern Center sued the county in 2004 on behalf of inmates. Though Fulton has improved jail conditions in the past, at times it has allowed conditions to deteriorate. Southern Center officials have said they want to see Fulton comply with all requirements for six months to a year before they drop the lawsuit.
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