Joshua Lopez, 26, Dies in the Custody of El Paso County

26-year-old Joshua Lopez passed away in the El Paso County, Texas jail on or about June 4, 2017.  Information provided in this post was obtained from a custodial death report filed by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Department with the Attorney General of Texas.

Mr. Lopez was allegedly arrested on or about May 31, 2017.  The death report indicates that Mr. Lopez had been receiving treatment for the medical condition that caused his death, even though his death was allegedly caused by suicide.  The report also indicates that Mr. Lopez had made suicidal statements.  Thus, from the death report itself, it is difficult to determine the extent to which Mr. Lopez had voiced an intent to commit suicide and/or the extent to which he had been provided treatment for any such mental health issues.

The custodial death report contains a lengthy description of what officers found when they found Mr. Lopez.  Mr. Lopez had allegedly hung a towel in a manner such that no one could look directly into his cell.  Officers found Mr. Lopez hanging in his cell after fully opening the door and gaining access.

As with every other post on this site, we make no allegation as to whether anyone acted inappropriately.  However, if an inmate is on suicide watch, there should be continuous monitoring of the inmate.  An inmate should not be allowed to have in his or her cell items with which he can hurt himself or herself, and he or she should not be allowed to block the view of jail personnel of the cell in which the inmate is housed.

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.