GA - Lashawn Thompson, 35, dies of negligence and horrific abuse while in jail awaiting trial on misdemeanor charge, Fulton Co., 14 Apr 2023

[Tracey4AU]

Y'all, this is just beyond horrifying. I believe most of us are here at WS to see justice done and I hope none of us think this is okay because <insert reason here>. Without going into details, I've had my own experience with a loved one being incarcerated for over a year (for charges that were dismissed, but I digress). I have seen first hand how powerless outsiders are once one goes into "the system". I was already heartbroken enough that we had to be separated for that long, and worried every day about what/who he may encounter - the thought of living in those conditions and not being able to do a d*mn thing about it is unacceptable. I'm sick over this.

 

[AzPistonsGirl]

speechless except to suggest this thread needs to be bumped often.

 

[neesaki]

All great points. Bedbugs potentially carry a disease named "chagas" which can manifest as cardiac problems and blood clotting if allowed to progress, not to mention the risk of secondary infections from, say, for instance -- having open sores in an inhumanely filthy and infested room he couldn't escape.

And the previous article posted said there was vermin. They carry all kinds of disease. They could have bitten him! This is so horrendous, there is zero excuse for humans being treated this way. Even an animal shelter with these conditions would have been shut down. That poor man.

 

[neesaki]

Y'all, this is just beyond horrifying. I believe most of us are here at WS to see justice done and I hope none of us think this is okay because <insert reason here>. Without going into details, I've had my own experience with a loved one being incarcerated for over a year (for charges that were dismissed, but I digress). I have seen first hand how powerless outsiders are once one goes into "the system". I was already heartbroken enough that we had to be separated for that long, and worried every day about what/who he may encounter - the thought of living in those conditions and not being able to do a d*mn thing about it is unacceptable. I'm sick over this.

Our justice systems treatment of the accused seems to become more barbaric by the day. This is a perfect example. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilt? It now seems to be the opposite of that, guilty until proven innocent. JMO

 

[MyJoey]

What is happening to the USA?
We are killing one another almost every day.
Often, there is NO reason.

Kids at school are no longer safe.

Parents murder their children, children murder their parents.

Kids bully their peers until kids see suicide as the only option.

Now, we put mentally ill people in cells that look like remnants of Chernobyl while they are literally eaten alive by BUGS.

What will happen to any and all of us?

If we have yet to be included as a statistic, it is just a matter of time before it happens to someone that we know and love, or even to US.

Lord, we need action before it's too late.


JMO

It’s not just the USA these things are happening all over the world.

 

[Laughing]

Our justice systems treatment of the accused seems to become more barbaric by the day. This is a perfect example. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilt? It now seems to be the opposite of that, guilty until proven innocent. JMO

Yet we have threads here about crimes committed within a few days of the accused being released on bail/bond.

Too much System, not enough Justice, imho.

jmho ymmv lrr and all that

 

[beubeubeu]

.

Our justice systems treatment of the accused seems to become more barbaric by the day. This is a perfect example. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilt? It now seems to be the opposite of that, guilty until proven innocent. JMO

At what point in history it was really "innocent until proven guilty" instead of "innocent. or innocent until proven guilty and punished (if at all) then rather lightly IF rich or/and privilleged vs. guilty. or guilty till proven innocent and occasionally punished anyway (and not lightly) IF poor and unprivilleged"?

It's in general much better than it was, at any time but still so, so, scarily far from good, decent, safe, honest, just... IMO. Back in the day it was just easier to be ignorant to all the bad and scary as long till it came for you (I mean "you" in general, not neesaki-kind-of-"you") cause there was much less info, much less news, much harder to learn and verify things.

 

[EllaMinnowP]

…

Labat told the crowd that the investigation into the death is ongoing.

“I don’t want for the sake of expediency rush through, I want to get it right. The family deserves that,” Sheriff Labat said.

Family attorney Michael Harper said it has taken too long to get answers.

“Sheriff, he died in September, how long does it take?” asked Harper.

Family members told Channel 2′s Audrey Washington they believe Sheriff Labat and others could have done more.

“He could’ve walked the jail. He said he didn’t see the pictures, but why didn’t he check the jail? The death chamber that my brother was in,” Brad Thompson asked.

The family told Washington they next plan to have a private autopsy done on Thompson’s body.

They also want the GBI to take over the case.

Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff has reached out to the Department of Justice about the case.

More at link:

Family calling for justice after man ‘eaten alive’ in ‘death chamber’ at Fulton Jail

Lashawn Thompson died in the Fulton County Jail in September 2022. His family says he was eaten alive by bedbugs.

www.wsbtv.com

 

[Marysmith]

Our justice systems treatment of the accused seems to become more barbaric by the day. This is a perfect example. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilt? It now seems to be the opposite of that, guilty until proven innocent. JMO

Why was he even there for 3 months for a misdemeanour batter charge? That alone just blows my mind…

 

[Helechawagirl]

Could not agree more. MOO

There is also a push to privatize prisons for profit. And that will not be better.

 

[Ravenmoon]

It’s not just the USA these things are happening all over the world.

But it SHOULD NEVER happen here.

Doesn't mean that it should be something happening anywhere.

The US should be held to a much higher standard.

JMO

 

[Laughing]

But it SHOULD NEVER happen here.

Doesn't mean that it should be something happening anywhere.

The US should be held to a much higher standard.

JMO

Standard missed in suburban Kansas City:

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article271707262.html

Man died in Clay County jail, unable to afford bond. His crime? Not paying child support

Read more at: https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article271707262.html#storylink=cpy

Both inmates had medical concerns, neither inmate was violent.

Big problem here....

jmho ymmv lrr

 

[AzPistonsGirl]

bump bump bump

back up we go

 

[Nancy19XX]

Why was he even there for 3 months for a misdemeanour batter charge? That alone just blows my mind…

I just saw someone I know sit in jail for 3 years awaiting trial. Covid didn't help. They were found not guilty and released. 3 months doesn't seem that bad considering, but it also doesn't seem right. Then again, so many continue to commit crimes while awaiting trial is hard to know what is 'right'.. MOO

 

[Puzzles8]

This case is sadly beyond belief. Lashawn Johnston died an inhumane death while in the custody of the Futon County Jail in Georgia.

Colin Kaepernick paid for an independent autopsy that has since revealed severe negligent and abuse as the cause of his death.

https://www.npr.org/2023/04/21/1171230585/colin-kaepernick-autopsy-georgia-inmate-jail-bugs

"The independent medical review listed “untreated decompensated schizophrenia” as a contributing cause to the death, in addition to dehydration, malnutrition and severe body insect infestation, which included lice and bed bugs, as “significant conditions.”"

https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/22/us/lashawn-thompson-atlanta-inmate-death-independent-medical-review/index.html

 

[GoBuckeyes]

There should be criminal charges in this case. People need to do jail time for causing this man's death. No parents, no family, no one to advocate for him so officials do whatever they want because he's mentally ill.

This is no better than if he'd had dementia or was elderly and couldn't speak and was abused in this way because he couldn't fight back.

May he rest in peace after all the BS he endured during his short life on Earth and may the people who left and kept him in that filth pay the price.

Georgia and Florida are really bad. I have a cousin recently incarcerated in GA. He's got severe mental illness, but he's trying to stay out of that part of the facility. He's lost 40 pounds since the middle of March. He gets 2 meals a day, one being a sandwich, usually bologna. No one can send him any money. They just keep saying they're backed up processing ppl. No word on when he'll be processed. It's a terribly helpless feeling for family, bc we can't do a thing. Prison reform is needed so badly.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I just saw someone I know sit in jail for 3 years awaiting trial. Covid didn't help. They were found not guilty and released. 3 months doesn't seem that bad considering, but it also doesn't seem right. Then again, so many continue to commit crimes while awaiting trial is hard to know what is 'right'.. MOO

You're right. 3 months isn't that bad considering COVID and how backed up the courts are. And it isn't always obvious what is 'right'. I do think that some prisons need to be upgraded to a minimum standard, obviously this one or this wing needs upgrading. And I think prison reform is needed badly. I wonder who was in charge of his care in the psychiatric wing? It certainly seems that they should have been aware of his condition.

A friend of mine nearly died in a homeless shelter in California from bug bites. So, is not just jails. In short, there's not enough money to go around right now. Much of it seems to be going overseas, and people here are hurting and suffering. jmoo

 

[GoBuckeyes]

This case is sadly beyond belief. Lashawn Johnston died an inhumane death while in the custody of the Futon County Jail in Georgia.

Colin Kaepernick paid for an independent autopsy that has since revealed severe negligent and abuse as the cause of his death.

https://www.npr.org/2023/04/21/1171230585/colin-kaepernick-autopsy-georgia-inmate-jail-bugs

"The independent medical review listed “untreated decompensated schizophrenia” as a contributing cause to the death, in addition to dehydration, malnutrition and severe body insect infestation, which included lice and bed bugs, as “significant conditions.”"

https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/22/us/lashawn-thompson-atlanta-inmate-death-independent-medical-review/index.html

DBM

 

[GoBuckeyes]

DBM

Are psych wards in prisons allowed to compel an inmate to be medicated? I'm not speaking to this case. The question came to mind because I know nothing about jail or prison psych wards. TIA

 

[Betty P]

Are psych wards in prisons allowed to compel an inmate to be medicated? I'm not speaking to this case. The question came to mind because I know nothing about jail or prison psych wards. TIA

I don’t know for certain, but probably so. His mental illness was putting his own life in danger and he was no longer able to act in his own best interest. They medicate mentally ill murderers who are preparing to go to trial.

This just sounds like a horrible case of abuse and neglect. Had there been any concern for his well being, they would have asked a judge for a hearing to make a determination of how to handle him.