Zachary Daniels was an inmate in Richmond, Texas, at Fort Bend County Jail when he died at age 22 on February 4, 2022. He used a bed sheet to commit suicide, though he reportedly made suicidal statements.

Supervision is a protective measure required by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) to help prevent inmate suicide. Alarmingly, non-compliant jails have often dropped the ball on inmate supervision, even supervision of those who are most at risk. Examples follow.

Non-Compliance of a Texas County Jail – Inmate Supervision

On a jail inspection report dated December 17, 2021, an inspector with TCJS alleges non-compliance with RULE §275.1-Regular Observation by Jailers. According to this rule, observation of potentially suicidal inmates must be performed at least every 30 minutes. Closed-circuit television can be used to monitor at-risk inmates, but the camera cannot be used in lieu of the face-to-face observations required in minimum jail standards.

The TCJS inspector who prepared this jail inspection report indicates that the maximum 30-minute time frame for observing inmates who are suicidal was routinely exceeded by 2 to 45 minutes. It was also found that the rounds that were properly documented had been conducted using the control station’s camera system. 

See Part 1 and this continuing series to learn more. In the next segment, learn about another area in which jails frequently fail to cover all the bases required for effective suicide prevention.

There is not an intention on this website to suggest that individuals or institutions participated in wrongdoing. Each post added to this site is meant as a benefit to inmates now or previously held in a county jail in Texas.

–Guest Contributor