Thirty-eight-year-old Kenderick Jackson was pronounced deceased on November 30, 2022, approximately 4.5 hours after being booked into the Euless Municipal Jail in Euless, Texas. Although the cause of death is pending the results of an autopsy, the custodial death report (CDR) about Mr. Jackson indicates that he caused his own death. The means of death listed is “drug overdose.”

Hays County Spends Thousands Daily to Address Jail Overcrowding

Hays County Jail in San Marcos, Texas, has an overcrowding issue that has been costing the county thousands of dollars daily. In the first week of July 2022, a report from the Hays County Sheriff’s Office shows that $120,000 was spent that week alone to lock inmates up in other Texas county jails. The cost doesn’t include the ongoing expenses associated with Hays County Jail.

A Hays County judge pointed to the slow pace in which the district attorney’s office and judges handle cases.

A local advocate for inmates brought the cite-and-divert program the county had adopted to mind one year after it was supposed to be implemented. He brought a birthday cake to the district attorney’s office for that purpose. Under the cite-and-divert program, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) would not arrest low-level misdemeanor suspects but, instead, would order them to meet with a prosecutor.

The Hays County District Attorney said the public had objected to the plan because there were no public defense procedures or pretrial services available through the program.

Learn more in Part 1 and this continuing series.

Accusing institutions or individuals of participation in wrongdoing is never intended on this website. The purpose is to provide assistance by way of posting information to benefit local Texas detainees in municipal and county jails.

–Guest Contributor