FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — The family of a Fulton County inmate who was stabbed to death last year has filed a lawsuit.
Inmate Edward Cherry stabbed fellow inmate Leonard Fortner to death with a shank inside the jail last April.
The lawsuit accuses Fulton County officials of ignoring the conditions inside the jail, which they say led to his death.
“Enough with the talk. The talk is cheap. We want to see action,” attorney CK Hoffler said.
Attorneys, along with Fortner’s family, said they’re taking their fight for justice to the next level.
“When someone’s civil rights are violated, there is something that can be done by law,” Leonard Fortner’s mother, Donna Fortner, said.
Leonard Fortner was booked at the Fulton County Jail last year on a minor, non-violent charge.
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“We know that the jail had a duty to protect its residents. The inmates who are there,” Hoffler said.
Fulton County Sheriff Pat LaBat and the Fulton County Board of Commissioners are named in the lawsuit.
Channel 2’s Audrey Washington reached out to the sheriff, but his office did not want to comment on a pending lawsuit.
Fulton County Board of Commissioners Chairman Robb Pitts said the board is responsible for the jail itself, not the management of it.
“We have allocated up to 300 million dollars to improve the conditions at the jail,” Pitts said.
Attorney Michael Harper represents the families of several people killed at the jail, including LaShawn Thompson.
“The commissioners and Robb Pitts continue to blame the sheriff, and the sheriff continues to blame the commissioners,” Harper said.
Harper filed a class action lawsuit against the Fulton County Jail. “This has to stop,” Harper said.
As for Fortner’s father, Terry, he just wants some form of accountability.
“Have them be responsible for what happened to our son,” he said.
In 2024, several inmates died inside the jail.
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