The cause of the April 1, 2022, death of Matthew Ray Maxwell after being in Wichita County Jail, Wichita, Texas, is currently unknown and pending autopsy results. According to the custodial death report, Mr. Maxwell was booked into the jail on March 28, 2022, and at that time he denied having any medical problems. On the day of his death, before being transported to a nearby hospital, he was observed in the shower area for the general population and was complaining of abdominal pain.

Non-Compliance in Providing Suicide Prevention Training

As mentioned previously, Jim Hogg County Jail in Hebbronville, Texas, was cited for alleged noncompliance with Rule §273.5 (a)(1) -Mental Disabilities/Suicide Prevention Plan. The inspector with the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) wrote the following in the January 2022 jail inspection report.

• It was discovered during interviews that members of the jail staff were not given Suicide Prevention Training in the past 12 months, though such training is required in the operational plan for addressing mental disabilities and suicide prevention.

Rule §275.1-Regular Observation by Jailers

Falls County Jail in Marlin, Texas, was cited for noncompliance with Rule §275.1-Regular Observation by Jailers in a jail inspection report dated March 15, 2022. The supervision of inmates who are potentially suicidal must be conducted in intervals not to exceed every 30 minutes. However, the jail was cited with regard to supervision of inmates in the general population. Such face-to-face observations must be made in intervals not to exceed once every 60 minutes.

Learn more in Part 1 of this continuing series.

There is no intention on this website to suggest that any person or institution has participated in misdeeds. The posts on this site aim to benefit inmates now or formerly incarcerated in county jails in Texas.

–Guest Contributor