Jail Suicide – In 13 Months, there are 8 Suicides in Wayne County Jails, Michigan
In Wayne County, Michigan, an alarming surge in jail suicides is causing widespread concern. Over the past 13 months, there have been eight suicides in Wayne County jails. This number is much higher than in facilities across the nation with ten times the number of inmates or more. At the same time this has occurred, Wayne County is having difficulty filling about 200 deputy positions. In addition, the jails are reportedly in a state of worsening disrepair and plans have stalled to build a new jail.
One of the inmates who recently committed suicide was Billy Adams. He was jailed for a probation violation. After being found hanging in his jail cell, he was hospitalized for 10 days. He was kept alive by a ventilator the entire time, and his family made the difficult decision to take him off of life support.
Most people in jails have not yet had their cases heard in court. Whether they are guilty or not doesn’t matter, as far as the responsibility jails have to keep them safe while incarcerated.
According to Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Timothy Kenny, the jails are built in a way that the sheriff’s staff has difficulty monitoring the inmates effectively, to ensure no one is harming themselves or others.
These statistics for the past 13 months provide all the evidence needed that something is clearly going wrong:
- Wayne County Jail has an average daily population of 1,750; and there have been 8 suicides.
- Cook County Jail has an average daily population of 9,600; and there have been no suicides.
- New York City Department of Corrections has an average daily population of 10,400; and there have been no suicides.
- Los Angeles County Jail has an average daily population of 17,300; and there have been 5 suicides.
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–Guest Contributor
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