Continuing from Part 1 of this two-part series, the deceased woman’s family members were eventually able to see the video record of the last 48 hours that their loved one spent in the for-profit jail before being transferred to a hospital without their knowledge. It appears that the jail staff only gave her three small cups of water during that two-day period. The severe decline of the woman’s health is obvious in the footage. She is emaciated and struggled to crawl. Having apparently lost her vision while in custody, she felt around blindly for her food and water, and she would knock on a glass window to request help.

The video footage, which is less than a minute in length, was made available in the form of 2,000 clips. Family members say they could hardly recognize their loved one in the video clips because of her severe decline. On the night the woman was taken to the emergency room, medical personnel immediately hooked her up to a feeding tube and an IV. Photos taken in the hospital before the woman’s death show that she is frail-looking and intubated.

Sources say that this jail has been repeatedly accused of neglect and abuse, especially in issues of health and medical care. Four other inmates at the jail have allegedly died since 2015, and some also involved alleged medical neglect. In one case, a 20-year-old diabetic died, and a nurse at the facility eventually pled guilty to negligent homicide in that case.

One inmate was handcuffed and pepper-sprayed. He informed jail guards that he was unable to breathe. He was found dead in his cell the next day after being left there with no jail monitoring. The jail is accused of giving profit priority over people’s lives. They allegedly have a history of hiring untrained and inexperienced jail staffers, resulting in harm to detainees.

Inmates do not lose their constitutional rights simply because they have been detained in a jail. County and city jails in Texas have constitutional responsibilities to inmates. If a custodial death in a jail is determined to be caused by an unconstitutional practice, custom, or policy, complainants can hire a Texas jail medical care attorney and file a lawsuit against it.

See Part 1 of this two-part series.

This is an informational post only, the same as with all posts on this website. There is no intention to suggest or assert any type of misconduct or transgression on the part of an individual, institution, or organization.

–Guest Contributor