Councilmember references Batman movie while discussing sale of Atlanta jail

ATLANTA — In a change of plans, the Atlanta City Council is halting the sale of the Atlanta City Detention Center to the Fulton County Government.

During Monday’s Public Safety & Legal Administration Committee Meeting in the Atlanta City Council, committee members discussed a resolution to authorize Dickens to proceed with the sale agreement.

While talking about what selling the jail would mean, a longtime member of the council referenced a popular comic book film in comparison to the decision.

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Councilmember weighs in, compares sale to ‘Dark Knight’

Councilmember Michael Julian Bond questioned the need for the sale, financially and in terms of future needs.

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Referencing the Batman movie “The Dark Knight,” he said it’s a matter of how much control in the situation to give up.

“When the Joker put out the ultimatum for Batman to reveal his identity or he killed somebody else, Batman went to his love, his lady lawyer friend and said, ‘you know what, I’m going to give in...’” Bond said. “She said ‘if you give up control and turn yourself in, they’re not going to let us be together.”

Bond said it was the same now, with who controls the ACDC.

“You give up the ACDC, you’re not going to have control. You’re not going to have a situation that you think and we’re gonna undermine the citizens of the city of Atlanta,” Bond said.

For one councilmember, it’s a definite ‘no’

Councilmember Antonio Lewis pushed back on the plan more forcefully, saying the city should not move forward.

“Forget the sale because to me, I don’t think that we should sell anything,” Lewis said. “We shouldn’t sell anything. I think we should look at the lease and...adjust the lease to make sure Fulton County could assume full financial and operational responsibility for the facility.”

The councilmember also said the ongoing legal battles between Sheriff Pat Labat and Commission Chair Rob Pitts were concerns, particularly because of Labat’s lawsuit claiming he’s not being given the budget to run the jail properly.

Lewis said Labat is not alone in that funding issue, with judges and other county staff requesting additional funds to run the jail system and they’re being denied by the commission.

City staff responds to concerns over next steps

Atlanta Chief Operating Officer LaChandra Burks told members of council that she and Dickens had met with staff at the ACDC to discuss what would happen when the sale finishes.

“We also talked to them about opportunities that we want to make available for them,” Burks said. “We have had outreach from Fulton County and DeKalb County who would like to take on some of our employees. We have some city departments with open funded positions that we’re going to make sure that they are given an opportunity to compete successfully for.”

That means that some of the ACDC positions will be closed, and the other opportunities are not guarantees for future employment.

The COO said the city was also looking for retirement and pension options for some staff employed 25 years or more to take “early outs.”

While city officials are ready to move forward, some members of council aren’t sold on the jail sale plan yet.

Questions on process, financials

Councilmember Wayne Martin also expressed some concerns with the process.

While he was supportive of the sale of the facility, “in concept,” Martin wanted city staff to “explore” other ways to alleviate problems related to the Rice Street Jail and how much Atlanta taxpayers would have to pay and what would happen to the city’s municipal detainees.

Burks said none of the detention processes for Atlanta municipal detainees would change, but some parts of the inmate population may be affected, depending on who they’re arrested by.

Meeting Fulton County’s deadline to sell

Across the committee, multiple members expressed concern that they were not able to meet Fulton County’s seven day deadline for approval of the agreement, saying they needed more time for consideration.

For some members of the committee, issues with financials, safety and even just control of future outcomes were top of mind.

Channel 2 Action News reported on the negotiations between the Fulton County Commission Chair Rob Pitts and Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens about the transfer of the property.

The mayor agreed to a $68 million purchase offer from the county commission on Sept. 8, but members had questions about how those millions would be used by the city after.

Other questions on budgeting if the sale goes through are still being considered, according to Burks.

What happens next?

Council member Eshé Collins pushed for a work session on the jail specifically, due to the complicated legal and constitutional issues involved in the process on the county’s side, regarding federal issues at the Rice Street Jail facility.

Martin later made a motion to hold the item for later discussion, which passed unanimously, with a future meeting on the jail sale to be held later in September.

While some members had proposed discussion at a Sept. 23 or Sept. 24 work session, an exact date was not confirmed.

As reported, for the sale to move forward, the Atlanta City Council and Fulton County Commission would need to give their approval for the transaction to be finalized.

For now, the item has been tabled.

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