Adrian Chevez Dies in Tarrant County Jail

The Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office, in Fort Worth, Texas, filed a report regarding the custodial death of Adrian Chevez.  Mr. Chevez was only 39 years old at the time of his death.  We provide information we obtained from that report, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone.

The summary portion of the report reads in its entirety:

“in-custody death of Tarrant County Inmate Adrian Chevez, white male, DOB: XX/XX/1983 CID XXXXXXX, who had been house at the Tarrant County Correction Center Jail at 100 N Lamar St, Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas 76196. Inmate Chevez had been in TCSO custody since 06/01/2023 on Possession of a Controlled Substance PG1, Unlawful Restraint, and Interfere with Emergency Call.

Inmate Chevez died on Saturday, June 24, 2023 at approximately 2252 hours at John Peter Smith Hospital. Inmate Chevez was transported to John Peter Smith Hospital via ambulance on June 24, 2023 after he was found hanging in his cell (59-D-13-02) on this date. A suicide note was discovered in his cell.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office was notified and took possession of Inmate Chevez. Tarrant County Sheriff’s Detective Timothy Soria at TASoria@TarrantCountyTX.gov 817-884-1271 has been assigned the death investigation (TCSO report 2023-09044). The Fort Worth Police Department Major Case Unit will perform an independent review of the case. Further documentation and reports will follow the investigation as they become available.”

The report admits that Mr. Chevez had made suicidal statements, but it provides no information regarding any ongoing mental health treatment Mr. Chevez may have been receiving.

The 14^th Amendment to the United States Constitution requires jails to protect suicidal inmates from those suicidal tendencies.  If jailers, medical personnel, and/or mental health personnel in a Texas county jail are deliberately indifferent to an inmate’s known suicidal tendencies, and the inmate dies as a result, then certain surviving family members may be able to file a lawsuit. Our Texas jail neglect, abuse, and suicide law firm is handling a number of such cases across Texas.

Written By: Dean Malone

Dean Malone

Dean Malone is the founder of Law Offices of Dean Malone, P.C., a jail neglect civil rights law firm. Mr. Malone earned his bachelor's degree at the University of Texas at Dallas, graduating summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA, and from Baylor University School of Law with a general civil litigation concentration. Mr. Malone served in several staff positions for the Baylor Law Review, including executive editor. Mr. Malone is an experienced trial lawyer, trying a number of cases to jury verdict and also handling arbitrations through final hearing. He heads the jail neglect section of his law firm, in which lawyers litigate cases involving serious injury and death resulting from jail neglect and abuse. Lawyers frequently refer cases to Mr. Malone due to his focus on this very complicated civil rights practice area.