What Happened To Noni Battiste-Kosoko?: The 19-Year-Old Inmate Found Dead In Fulton County Jail

A dead inmate at the Atlanta City Detention Center in Fulton County, Georgia, is sparking questions.

The body of 19-year-old Noni Battiste-Kosoko was found by detention center officials while making dinner rounds, Fox 5 Atlanta reports. The victim was being held for a misdemeanor bench warrant since May 2. Her bond was initially set at $2,000, but after new charges came out of of Miami-Dade County, Florida, she was held without bond.

Around 6:30 p.m., Battiste-Kosoko was found unresponsive in her cell on July 11, 2023. Medical personnel and the Atlanta Fire rescue team found no obvious signs of injury. Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office is expected to perform the autopsy.

The Fulton County detentions and jail have been under a microscope over the last couple of months. In April, the chief jailer and two assistant chief jailers resigned after a prisoner, Lashawn Thompson, was found “eaten alive” in his cell. Thompson was arrested in June 2022 for a misdemeanor simple battery charge and was placed in the psychiatric wing due to mental health issues. Three months later, he “was found dead in a filthy jail cell after being eaten alive by insects and bed bugs,” according to Michael Harper, the family’s attorney.

Now, the Department of Justice has launched a civil investigation into conditions at Fulton County Jail, according to Atlanta News First.

The investigation will look at the living conditions at the jail, access to medical and mental health care, history of conditions at the jail, use of force, and more. Investigators will look into whether “Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office discriminate against persons with psychiatric disabilities inside the jail.”

“People in prisons and jails are entitled to basic protections of their civil rights,” United States Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “During this comprehensive review of the conditions of confinement at the Fulton County Jail, the Justice Department will determine whether systemic violations of federal laws exist, and if so, how to correct them.”