Fulton Owes $1M+ To Security Agency For Jail Officers: Sheriff

ATLANTA, GA — The Fulton County Sheriff's Office says it is in a budget crisis after an outstanding balance forced a contract termination to supply security officers to the Fulton County Jail.

Authorities said late Thursday night the sheriff's office owes $1,076,464.67 to Strategic Security Corp. for three months.

Strategic Security on Thursday morning notified the Fulton County Board of Commissioners and the sheriff's office that their services to the jail would end at 5 p.m. Friday.

During negotiations, the contracted officers received text messages with instructions to "abandon their posts," authorities said. They were told they would be clocked out at 2:15 p.m., that their contract had ended and that they should not report to work in the future.

"These actions created an immediate safety issue within the Fulton County Jail. Additional personnel from all FCSO divisions were deployed to staff the areas of the jail that were left abandoned," authorities said in a news release.

Authorities said the "funding shortfall" has created an emergency situation, one that has prompted the sheriff's office to quicken contingent hiring, authorities said.

About 50 employees with Strategic Security arrived Thursday evening at the jail and were given conditional employment offers that included full-time positions with benefits, authorities said.

Some of these staffers who were scheduled to work Thursday night started work immediately after completing paperwork with Fulton County, authorities said.

“Tonight, as I addressed the nearly 50 women and men who were interested in maintaining employment, my team and I were thanked for the opportunity,” Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said in the Thursday night release.

The sheriff's office said it has been facing a lack of funds in its entire organization, a concern authorities said they have been addressing with county government officials since 2021.