ATLANTA — Georgia’s Fulton County has reached a settlement with the household of a person who died in a bedbug-infested cell within the county jail’s psychiatric wing, the household’s legal professionals stated Thursday.
Lashawn Thompson, 35, died in September, three months after he was booked into the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta. Attorneys Ben Crump and Michael Harper, who characterize Thompson’s household, stated in a information launch Thursday that the household has reached settlements with the county “and other unidentified entities.”
Thompson’s dying gained public consideration in April after Harper launched pictures of his face and physique lined in bugs. The U.S. Department of Justice cited Thompson’s dying final month when asserting an investigation into jail situations in Fulton County.
The household is happy with the settlements, however the legal professionals stated within the assertion that “we are nowhere near the end of this journey to full justice.”
“We will continue to work with the Thompson family –– and the community that rallied behind them –– to ensure that a tragedy like this one never happens to another family or takes one more life,” the assertion says. “Lashawn’s life mattered, and together, we can demand and motivate significant change in his name. That will be the legacy of Lashawn Thompson.”
The legal professionals stated the settlements are for “undisclosed amounts.” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Tuesday that Fulton County commissioners on Wednesday voted to approve a $4 million settlement however stated detailed phrases of the settlement weren’t instantly disclosed.
An unbiased post-mortem launched by the household in May stated Thompson “was neglected to death.” An earlier report from the Fulton County medical expert’s workplace discovered no apparent indicators of trauma on Thompson’s physique however famous a “severe bed bug infestation.” It listed his explanation for dying as “undetermined.”
Department of Justice investigators plan to take a look at dwelling situations, entry to medical and psychological well being care, use of extreme power by workers and situations that will give rise to violence between individuals held in Fulton County jails, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division stated final month when asserting the federal investigation.
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