Forty-two-year-old Amy Michelle McInnis was booked into Victoria County Jail in Victoria, Texas, on April 3, 2020. Five days later, she was pronounced dead in her cell. The custodial death report suggested that she may have had medical and mental health problems.

Jailers in Texas and across the U.S. have been forced by public policy to deal with the mentally ill. Statistics show that more people with mental health problems are incarcerated than in hospitals. One of the latest updates in minimum jail standards for the state of Texas relates to mentally ill inmates. The Sandra Bland Act put new jail standards into place in Texas county jails in an effort to help prevent suicides and to get inmates the psychological help they need.

According to a watchdog group in Texas, the family members of mentally ill inmates can submit a formal request that their loved ones receive screening for placement in a mental health unit.

The watchdog group also reports that one young man who had been arrested and allegedly beaten up in a Texas jail was fortunate enough to be released. Reportedly, an advocate helped by getting the inmate evaluated by a forensic psychiatrist. The young man was declared insane, criminal charges were dismissed, and he was placed in a medical facility for long-term care.

Learn more in this ongoing series.

This website provides posts intended as helpful resources to assist inmates in Texas county jails. It is never intended on this website to imply that misdeeds on the part of persons or institutions have occurred.

–Guest Contributor