Coleman County, Texas Inmate Dies in Custody
On or about Sunday, October 1, 2017, in the morning, a Coleman County jailer was in the jail’s cell area near a single cell. Inmate Derrek Monroe allegedly became upset and starting hitting a phone against a table in the cell. Mr. Monroe then allegedly hung himself using the phone cord. There was only one jailer in the jail at the time of the incident, and he apparently did not assist Mr. Monroe. Instead, he contacted the Sheriff, the jail administrator, and the on-duty deputy. Once the jail administrator arrived at the jail, the on-duty jailer entered the cell and attempted life-saving treatment. It was too late. Mr. Monroe was transported to one hospital, then later transferred to another hospital in Abilene, (Taylor County) Texas. Mr. Monroe passed away the following day.
All of the information we obtained in this post was obtained from a custodial death report filed by the Coleman County Sheriff’s Department with the Texas State Attorney General. Therefore, we do not have personal knowledge of any of the facts asserted in this post beyond what we read in the report. Further, we make no allegations as to whether anyone did anything wrong. Pretrial detainees, and convicted inmates, have rights under the United States Constitution to reasonable medical care and to keep them from harm, whether inflicted by themselves or others.
Dean Malone
Dean Malone