Following up on a Prisoner Complaint, Texas Commission on Jail Standards Discovers an Alleged Violation of Minimum Jail Standards
According to the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS), a complaint was made on behalf of a prisoner which prompted a special jail inspection at Crosby County Jail in Crosbyton, Texas. A Special Inspection Report was released by TCJS on March 7, 2018, regarding the results of the inspection. A citation was issued alleging that the jail staff had violated a minimum jail standard.
The investigation into the prisoner complaint included viewing a video taken at Crosby County Jail on January 11, 2018. This was done because the complainant claimed with certainty that required observations of prisoners were not performed that day. Video review showed that required 60-minute observations were exceeded by from 1 minute to about 3 hours. Documentation, however, indicated that visual face-to-face observations were conducted by jailers within the required time frame. Because the video evidence failed to support the documentation in the observation logs, a citation for a violation was issued.
Face-to-face observations in county jails in Texas are required for the safety of prisoners. Not everyone in a county jail is guilty of whatever they have been jailed for. In addition to that and despite procedures to keep prisoners safe, it can be frightening and dangerous for anyone to be locked in a facility with other people who could be criminals with violent tendencies. Without routine visits and oversight of jailers, potential dangers could increase. This is similar to the requirement to check on potentially suicidal prisoners every 30 minutes at most. It is not uncommon for jailers conducting observations to discover that a person is in the process of committing suicide. Sometimes the prisoner is rescued quickly enough to survive, and maintaining minimum jail standards increases the possibility of survival.
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