The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Fulton County Sheriff may be held in contempt over the condition of the Fulton County Jail located in Atlanta. For the past several years, the Fulton County Jail has been under the supervision of the federal courts pursuant to a lawsuit involving inhumane conditions there.

Things don’t appear to be good. One of the more basic things that you would expect from the jail is working locks. Apparently the internal locks aren’t working so well, leaving inmates free to roam about. There are also insufficient beds for all of the inmates. When the population of the jail went below a certain number, the Fulton County commissioners would not approve outsourcing of the housing of inmates to other city jails, a measure that Fulton County had previously used to comply with federal court orders. Officials in Atlanta have not figured out how to pay for court-ordered renovations in years. According to the AJC:

Some say the Fulton County Jail on Rice Street has always been a problem — and an expensive one at that.The $48 million jail opened almost 25 years ago to solve the issues that plagued the old jail, such as overcrowding and dangerous conditions. But those problems remain today, critics say, despite the county being under a consent order that requires them to make significant renovations, limit the number of inmates and maintain an adequate staff.Because there aren’t enough beds, some inmates sleep on the floor. They roam where they shouldn’t because faulty locks can’t hold them in their cells. And not enough detention workers are on duty at any given time to stand guard. A federal judge has scheduled a hearing in early February in which the sheriff and the county must “show cause” why they should not be held in contempt.

I’ve gone to several events at the Georgia Dome this year. That facility is about as old as the Fulton County Jail. In fact, my son and I just went to the Chik-Fil-a Bowl there to watch the Texas A&M game. The locks seemed to work. We were only allowed into designated areas. It was cold and rainy out, but things were comfy under the dome. There were 67,000 people there, but there were seats to spare. Everybody seemed to have enough to eat and drink. There was ample security. You could text a message to a particular number if a problem arose. Little toy cows were parachuted to lucky fans from the rafters and from a remote controlled blimp. The City of Atlanta has kept things running well. And yet …

… And yet, local officials have found a way to fund and even better stadium. This one will be even cooler than the perfectly good one we already have, and the roof will open and close.

Meanwhile the Fulton County Sheriff prepares for another contempt hearing because his office can’t figure out how to get the locks to work in the jail.