ATLANTA — A Fulton County judge ordered a stiff prison sentence for an officer who smuggled an assortment of drugs into the Fulton County Jail.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne obtained bodycam video showing how the case unfolded.
Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said his office turned the Jadon Young case over to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ office after his people found a veritable drug store in a backpack inside the jail.
Labat told Winne that he’s so grateful a judge took it seriously and hopes the sentence she got steers others away from the same crime.
“You’ve embarrassed yourself and the department you used to work for and you’ve contributed to the crisis we’ve had at this jail that we’ve had to experience for years,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee told Young during her sentencing hearing. “You’re the cause of the danger that everyone who works there and has to be detained there has to experience. So I’m not going to belabor the point but the sentence in this case will be 40 years to serve 15 years with the balance on probation.”
“I am grateful to Judge Scott McAfee who sentenced that young lady to 15 years,” Willis said. “We cannot have the very people that are to guard the prisoners actually bring illegal items into them.”
Deputy District Attorney Tonya Boykin oversees the office’s anti-corruption unit said Young could be seen in body cam video from 2021 as she leaned against the wall as she was walking down a hallway in the jail.
It was just a part of a series of events that led to the discovery that then-Officer Young had smuggled drugs within the walls of the jail.
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Boykin and Chief Senior Assistant District Attorney Tarrance Miller say a fellow officer returning from a break had not been able to get back into a control tower in the jail where Young was supposed to be working.
“At some point, they found defendant young essentially incoherent inside the tower,” Boykin said.
The two prosecutors say the mystery surrounding Young’s behavior and concerns for her safety led to a sergeant escorting her to a jail office and ultimately to a search of Young’s bag.
“I smell what seems to be marijuana coming from this bag,” one of the deputies said on body cam video.
Miller said sheriff’s office supervisors found a wide assortment of drugs including the widely abused opioid oxycodone and other suspicious items in Young’s bag.
“Fifty to 40 white pills, 50 to 40 white bars, some gummies, marijuana, a ball of moist tobacco and rolling papers,” Miller said.
On Jan. 28, a jury convicted Young who represented herself at trial, of 10 counts including possession of controlled substances, crossing jail guidelines with prohibited items and violation of oath by public officer.
An order from McAfee said at the outset of her jury trial, “The court warned the defendant that it would not tolerate any interruptions or verbal outbursts.”
But it indicates at least twice that Young continued to interrupt despite repeated warnings to cease her verbal outbursts. She received an additional 40 days in jail over the outbursts.
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