Fulton takes steps to fix problems at county jail

ATLANTA (AP) Fulton County officials hope to end federal oversight of jail by taking steps to fix problems.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the county's board of commissioners last week approved a budget for 2014 that includes $2.1 million to send hundreds of inmates to other jails to help ease overcrowding. They also added $3.5 million to deal with staffing issues at the jail and other county departments.

Commission Chairman John Eaves tells the newspaper he hopes the steps will convince a federal judge to end his supervision of the jail by the end of the year.

A federal lawsuit in 2004 detailed dirty, dangerous and crowded conditions at the jail, and the county has struggled to meet the conditions set forth in a 2006 agreement to settle that suit.