On January 27, 2022, Torry Lamont Newman was detained and placed in Smith County Jail in Tyler, Texas. Tragically, he was found unresponsive in his cell on February 18, 2022. He was transported to a local hospital, where he died on the same day. Mr. Newman was 46 years old at the time of his death.

Denial of Medical Care in Jails

Providing medical care is among the responsibilities of jails. Although provisions for such care are outlined in minimum jail standards, something seems to be going completely wrong. Most complaints against Texas county jails are about the denial of medical care for inmates. Yet, strangely, annual jail inspections reflect a limited number of jails are in non-compliance specifically in regard to medical care services.

The issues surrounding inmate medical care and denial of medical care are complex. They involve county budgets that strain to keep up with the needs of mentally ill, suicidal, and drug or alcohol-addicted inmates. This is true in Texas and county jails across the country.

In one state outside Texas, a 37-year-old man was booked into a county jail. He later died in a pool of vomit and blood. An autopsy was performed, and it revealed that he died of sepsis. It also showed that after suffering from pneumonia, the infection in his left lung was so severe that the weight of his lung nearly doubled.

Learn more in Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 of this series.

This website does not intend to make accusations of wrongdoing against individuals or institutions. The posts are added on this site to help Texas inmates now or previously detained in county jails.

–Guest Contributor