The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) requires municipal and county jails in Texas to supervise inmates according to specific timelines. Inmate supervision is recognized as an important component in keeping jail environments as safe as possible. Failing to provide proper supervision places inmates in potential danger in many different specific ways. Sometimes, after an inmate has died, the follow-up investigation at the jail reveals that failing to supervise the inmates as required was among the circumstances surrounding the death, such as in the following example.

Jail Inspection Report for Denton County March 8-10, 2022

The TCJS inspector cited Denton County for alleged noncompliance with RULE §275.1-Regular Observation by Jailers in a March 2022 Jail Inspection Report. This rule addresses the face-to-face observation requirements for the inmates in holding cells. Inmates who are known to be potentially suicidal, mentally ill, or assaultive or who have behaved bizarrely are supposed to be checked in intervals not to exceed every 30 minutes.

• The TCJS inspector reviewed video documentation and found that a jailer did not conduct the required face-to-face observation of the inmate in holding cell one. Instead of seeing the inmate inside the cell, the jailer scanned the electronic tag but did not observe the individual. The inmate suffered a medical emergency while in the holding cell, and it resulted in his death.

Learn more in this continuing series.

This website seeks to provide resources that can be of help to municipal and county jail inmates in Texas. There is no intention on this website to suggest that persons or institutions have been involved in improprieties.

–Guest Contributor