The following are details about John David Snell in a custodial death report (CDR). The Garza County Sheriff’s Office in Post, Texas, prepared the CDR. On Saturday, June 24, 2023, at approximately 5 p.m., Mr. Snell was found unresponsive in cell 188. Sergeant Perez entered cell 188 and called Mr. Snell’s name several times but got no response from him. Sgt. Perez tried multiple times to wake Mr. Snell, but his efforts were unsuccessful. Sgt. Perez exited cell 188 and called for emergency medical services (EMS).

At approximately 5:20 p.m., EMS arrived at the facility and took control of the situation. At about 5:35 p.m., Mr. Snell was loaded into an ambulance and taken to Covenant Hospital in Lubbock. At about 7 p.m., the neurologist from Covenant Hospital called Captain Copeland asking about a traumatic injury to the right side of Mr. Snell’s brain. The neurologist stated that it seemed that Mr. Snell was in a fight or something. Capt. Copeland stated that inmate Snell was in a detox cell by himself.

A Second Detainee Dies in Garza County Jail Within 2 Months Continued

Continuing with details about events surrounding the death of the 47-year-old at Garza County Jail. At about 8:30 p.m., the high-flow oxygen was completely removed from the detainee, and he was given a reduced nasal cannula. The detainee was then sedated by UMC medical staff and continuously monitored by UMS staff, periodically reducing the amount of oxygen. At 11:18 p.m., the detainee was pronounced deceased by a physician. The CDR about the detainee’s death indicates that the medical cause of death was “inmate was diagnosed with Leukemia.”

Learn more in Part 1 and Part 2 of this continuing series.

One purpose of this website is to provide helpful resources for detainees in Texas county and city jails. There is never an intention on this site of suggesting that any person or entity has been involved in wrongdoing.

–Guest Contributor