When Amy Michelle McInnis died in the custody of Victoria County Jail in Victoria, Texas, on April 8, 2020, she had been incarcerated for a total of 5 days. According to the custodial death report, the cause of death was unknown at that time. The report did say, however, that 42-year-old Amy Michelle McInnis showed signs of having mental health and medical issues.

During the booking process in Texas county jails, jail staff members equipped with required training are tasked with determining whether an inmate is at risk. Questions are asked and observations are made for the purpose of determining if the individual is mentally ill, potentially suicidal, or in need of medical care. This process meets minimum jail standards created by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS).

County jails are inspected by TCJS annually as a form of enforcement of Texas jail standards. On March 15, 2021, a jail inspection report reflected non-compliance on this very issue of properly classifying inmates as they enter the jail.

RULE §271.3 – Training

In reference to a required plan that a jail must develop and implement detailed in RULE §271.1, said plan must include a minimum of four hours of training of jail staff members involved in inmate classification. The training must include the following elements:

• Principles of classification assessments
• Procedures for classification assessments
• Instruments for classification assessments
• Guidelines for housing assignments
• Reassessment requirements
• Inmate’s needs

Alleged Non-compliance

According to the note provided by the TCJS inspector, staff members at that particular jail who had not completed the mandatory 4 hours of classification training were performing classification duties.

See Part 1 and this ongoing series.

This website purposes to assist county jail inmates in Texas by providing posts that can serve as helpful resources. There is no intention on this site, at any time, to imply improprieties on the part of entities or individuals.

–Guest Contributor