Jim Wells County Jail in Alice, Texas, Allegedly Failed to Make Required Observations of Marcus Soza Before his Custodial Death
Twenty-three-year-old Marcus Soza was found unresponsive in his jail cell at Jim Wells County Jail in Alice, Texas, on January 31, 2018. He was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Following the custodial death of Soza, the jail was inspected by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS). In a Special Inspection Report released March 15, 2018, TCJS alleges that documentation shows a mandatory observation did not occur and another did not involve the required face-to-face observation just before Soza was found unresponsive. The jail was cited for allegedly failing to uphold the minimum jail standard requiring prisoners confined in a detoxification or holding cell to be observed by jail personnel in intervals not to exceed every 30 minutes.
In TCJS’s Special Inspection Report, it is noted that video evidence and review of documentation combined with self-reporting by facility administration showed that the 30-minute face-to-face observation prior to the prisoner being discovered did not occur. Within the next required time period, a jailer went by but failed to have a face-to-face observation of the prisoner.
The 30-minute observation interval is specifically for prisoners who are potentially suicidal, known to be assaultive, mentally ill, or who have demonstrated bizarre behavior prior to being confined. Closed circuit television can be used, but it cannot be used in lieu of mandatory personal observations.
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