Nicholas Orion Vanwyhe was booked into Travis County Jail in Austin, Texas, on April 15, 2021, at the age of 39. Jail records indicate that he made suicidal statements.  In a cell where face-to-face observations occurred generally every hour, he hung himself and died on April 30, 2021.

The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) provides county jails with the minimum jail standards by which they must operate. Suicide prevention is implemented in Texas jails. Details are found in the Texas Administrative Code in the chapter covering health services.

RULE §273.5 –Mental Disabilities/Suicide Prevention Plan

The following are among the rules included in approved suicide prevention plans for Texas county jails:

• Staff training must be provided that equips jail staff members to recognize, supervise, document, and handle potentially suicidal inmates. Jail staff assigned to intake screening must be provided with supplemental training, as well.
• Inmates deemed to be at risk for committing suicide must be housed in an area with others who are either potentially suicidal or who have a mental disability.
• Jail staff must be familiar with procedures for intervention that occurs prior to a suicide attempt and during an attempt that is in progress.
• The intake screening instrument jails use must be completed in its entirety when inmates are admitted into jail.

Learn more in this continuing series.

The aim of providing posts for this site is to help Texas inmates in county jails, whether they are past or current prisoners. It is never intended on this site to suggest that wrongs have occurred on the part of individuals or organizations.

–Guest Contributor