Ashley Elizabeth Maxwell entered Gregg County Jail in Longview, Texas, on May 24, 2022. The custodial death report (CDR) filed by the Gregg County Sheriff’s Department indicates that Ms. Maxwell was placed on suicide watch. This involved putting her in housing for at-risk inmates. Two days later, she was discovered hanging from a television cable wire in her cell, and she was pronounced dead on May 26, 2022.

Non-compliance with Suicide Prevention Training

An inspector with the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) alleges that Jim Hogg County Jail on Old Cemetery Road in Hebbronville, Texas, was non-compliant with regard to four minimum jail standards. The jail inspection report with this information is dated January 5, 2022. Failure to comply with minimum standards is always a concern, but it is especially grievous when it can put lives at stake.

RULE §273.5 (a)(1) in regard to training requires that each jail make provisions for staff training that include the frequency and duration of training. Procedures for recognizing, supervising, documenting, and handling inmates must be included in the training. Additional training is required for members of the jail staff who are responsible for intake screening.

• The TCJS inspector reports that members of the staff were interviewed, and it was revealed that Suicide Prevention Training had not been provided within the previous 12 months, though it is a requirement in Hogg County Jail’s approved Mental Disabilities/Suicide Prevention Operational Plan.

Learn more in Part 1 and this continuing series.

The purpose of this website is to assist Texas county jail inmates by providing helpful resources. There is never an intention of implicating persons or institutions in acts of wrongdoing.

–Guest Contributor