WABE's Week In Review: Examining conditions at Fulton County jail and a visa program to protect Georgia's migrant workers

April 14th, 2023

The family of a 35-year-old Black man who died at the Fulton County Jail says they want the facility shut down and replaced. At a press conference across the street from the Fulton County Superior Court on Thursday, April 13, Lashawn Thompson’s family said he was suffering from mental illness when he died under brutal conditions.

Thompson’s younger brother told me: “Bringing awareness, letting people know, shutting the jail down, changing the system, that would be the greatest justice that anybody could get. He was just an everyday person. He loved to cook. He loved to dance. He loved music.” pic.twitter.com/RssslODM4P
— Chamian Cruz 🔎 (@xchamian) April 14, 2023

Fulton County Sheriff’s Office is responding to a lawsuit filed by the family of #LashawnThompson, who died inside the psychiatric ward at the Fulton jail. The unit was overrun by an outbreak of lice & scabies. He was detained last summer for a misdemeanor charge. MTK. –@wabenews pic.twitter.com/3E9uDwuXzr
— Chamian Cruz 🔎 (@xchamian) April 13, 2023

Dems choose Chicago over Atlanta, New York…

Democrats have chosen Chicago to host their 2024 national convention, trying to keep the party’s momentum going after last fall’s midterm election success in the critical Midwest. That Chicago beat out Atlanta was nonetheless a surprise given Georgia’s strategic importance as a swing state.

Biden won Georgia two years ago, becoming the first Democrat to do so in a presidential election since Clinton in 1992, and his party now controls both of its Senate seats after wins that drew national attention the last two cycles.

BREAKING NEWS: Chicago will host the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

Atlanta had been in the running. #gapol pic.twitter.com/eYRr3UGmzf
— Rahul Bali (@rahulbali) April 11, 2023

2024 Democratic National Convention Awarded To Chicago

"The thing that also Illinois had was a lot of cash coming from the Governor."

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens on Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker's promise to use his personal fortune to back the convention in Chicago. #atlpol pic.twitter.com/LvVs4KokOO
— Rahul Bali (@rahulbali) April 11, 2023

Also in this episode…

— Emily Wu Pearson looks at how a new visa program could protect migrant workers in Georgia from abuse.

— Sam Gringlas reports on a new rule proposed by the Biden Administration that would likely conflict with a Georgia High School Association policy on transgender student athletes.

— Jess Mador and Molly Samuel discuss Georgia’s abortion law in the wake of recent court rulings on abortion medication.

— Rahul Bali tells us about Fulton County Commissioners considering a new sales tax to fund hospitals and healthcare.

— Jim Burress talks to an expert on invasive species in Georgia and how to help keep their populations from growing.

— DorMiya Vance reports the Atlanta Community Food Bank says it expects a greater need over the upcoming summer season.