ABBEVILLE, Ga. (WALB) — A mother and sister are vocalizing their frustrations after their loved one was allegedly stabbed more than 30 times during a gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison on Sept. 3.

INITIAL REPORTING: Inmate killed, numerous others injured in supposed gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison

Tihirah Johnson and Rachelle Hale didn’t know their family member was involved in a fight and injured until the day after, when they say an unknown person contacted them and told them he was hurt and taken to the hospital.

Johnson and Hale then started reaching out to the prison to learn more about the condition of their relative. Johnson said the prison told them it would contact them, but never did.

They then began calling different hospitals to try to find him. Johnson’s sister was able to find where her brother was hospitalized, but the hospital wouldn’t give out any information either.

“The hospital wouldn’t give us information. The jail wouldn’t give us information. It was inmates who were empathetic enough to reach out for him, who were concerned enough, who found the human decency to reach out for him and risk their freedom,” said Johnson.

According to Johnson and Hale, they got info more than once from different unknown sources via phone call, text, and social media messages. But the people didn’t say who they were.

Johnson says she got another update a few days later from another anonymous number, and that person told her that her brother was returned to the prison, but left to recover in terrible conditions without clothes, a bed, or a mattress.

“We expect that people are treated like humans, that they have food, that they have proper medical care, and that they have proper services that prepare them for reintegration for society,” Johnson explained.

WALB News 10 has called and emailed the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) multiple times to get specific information on the inmates who are critically injured. Johnson and Hale fear their loved one is one of them. An official with the GDC replied around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, saying three inmates are still in the hospital, while 11 have been returned to the prison.

WALB is frequently contacted by relatives of inmates, who say they receive little to no communication from the GDC about the condition of their incarcerated relatives.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Georgia Department of Corrections has attributed violence within the prison system to a significant proportion of the prison population having violent offense convictions, gang affiliations, and mental health conditions.

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