Shamond Titas Lewis was placed on suicide watch when he was initially processed into the Dallas County Jail in Dallas, Texas, on September 22, 2022. The following day, jailers placed Mr. Lewis in a restraint chair after he refused to cooperate during intake procedures. A short time later, 24-year-old Shamond Lewis became unresponsive in the chair. He was transported by ambulance to a Dallas hospital, where he died on September 29, 2022.

Emergency Restraint Chair Use – Oregon County Policies

In the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Critical Policy on the use of Restraints, specifics are provided about emergency restraint chair use in the Oregon county’s jail. The information includes the following:

• Deputies will inspect the Emergency Restraint Chairs once per shift, ensuring that they are clean and ready for use at all times.
• Before using restraint chairs, other restraints or methods must have been found to be or are considered likely to be ineffective. When possible, a shift supervisor will make the determination of whether the restraint chair is appropriate for a particular situation. The shift supervisor will also, when appropriate, approve the use of a restraint chair, be present when deputies place an inmate in the chair, and ensure that proper documentation is in place.

Learn more in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of this ongoing series.

Providing helpful resources to Texas inmates who are or have previously been incarcerated in a county or municipal jail in the state is the purpose of this website. Making accusations against organizations or individuals is never an intention on this site.

–Guest Contributor