Fulton leaders criticize sheriff for allegedly misusing ‘Inmate Welfare’ funds

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - On Wednesday, Fulton County leaders questioned Sheriff Pat Labat’s management of funds earmarked for the welfare of those inside the Fulton County Jail.

“This isn’t somebody else. The sheriff needs to take ownership and accountability for this,” said Commissioner Bob Ellis.

The Sheriff’s Office admitted they wrongly allocated funds from the ‘Inmate Welfare Fund’ to cover the expenses of deputy uniforms, ham and turkey giveaways, a face painting booth and a bounce house.

Commissioner Natalie Hall came to the defense of Sheriff Labat on Wednesday in referencing a memo that explained the funds were unintentionally pulled from the Inmate Welfare Fund rather than from operational budgets.

The Sheriff’s Office sent Atlanta News First a copy of that memo.

“Upon immediate notification, decisive steps were taken to rectify the situation,” penned Sheriff Labat, in an Oct. 30 memo.

Labat detailed they dismissed two employees and launched an internal review of the ‘Inmate Welfare Fund.’

Atlanta News First got a copy of the line-by-line breakdown of the expenditures from January 2021 to August 2023.

Among those, the Sheriff’s Office used more than $1 million for Sheriff’s Office vehicles, $500,000 for deputy uniforms, $39,000 for Honey Baked Ham gift cards, and $5,000 for a South Fulton Thanksgiving giveaway.

Funds were also used for a face painting booth, DJs and a bounce house.

Those expenses all came from the ‘Inmate Welfare Fund.’

On Wednesday, Ammons confirmed the funds have not yet been reimbursed to the ‘Inmate Welfare Fund.’

“I’m asking for the sheriff to return those funds,” said Commissioner Khadijah Abdur-Rahman.

On Wednesday, county leaders debated the alleged mismanagement of funds during a discussion item at the Fulton County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Commissioner Marvin Arrington questioned if the Board can raise questions over the spending of the sheriff.

“The sheriff is a constitutional officer. I don’t know how much control we have over monies controlled by a state constitutional officer,” said Arrington, who was critical of Commissioner Ellis pointing the blame at the sheriff.

Ellis fired back saying it’s the responsibility of the Board to hold leaders accountable when it comes to taxpayer funding.

“I don’t care if you’re a constitutional officer, the president, the pope, whoever you are. So questions will continue to be asked and answers need to be given,” said Commissioner Ellis.

Members of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners have been critical of how the sheriff has used taxpayer funding to address the critical needs at the Fulton County Jail.

Last month, the Board voted to rescind $2.1 million in funding to the Sheriff’s Office for a program for medical monitoring bracelets of inmates.

In 2023, 10 people in the County’s custody have died at the Fulton County Jail.

Multiple commissioners on Wednesday proposed freezing all expenditures from the ‘Inmate Welfare Fund’ until spending parameters were set.

There was no vote on this proposal.

“We certainly don’t need to punish the inmates for this, they’ve been punished enough,” said Commissioner Arrington, who cautioned against freezing funds.