Man Dies in Harris County, Texas Jail

The Harris County Sheriff’s Department, in Houston, Texas, filed a custodial death report with the Attorney General of Texas regarding the death of Paul Joshua Jacobs. Mr. Jacobs was only 33 years old at the time of his death. Information in this post was obtained from that report, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone.

On April 28, 2020, Mr. Jacobs was booked into the Harris County jail. About a month later – on May 30, 2020 – other inmates alerted detention officers that Mr. Jacobs was unresponsive in his cell. Detention officers and medical staff responded, and Mr. Jacobs was transported to the jail clinic. Houston Fire Department paramedics arrived, assumed care, and transported Mr. Jacobs to St. Joseph Hospital. Mr. Jacobs was pronounced deceased at 3:12 a.m.

The custodial death report makes no mention of what caused Mr. Jacobs’ death. While, once again, we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone, it is not typical for someone who is only 33 years of age to die of natural causes. Presumably, an autopsy was conducted. Moreover, our experience with Harris County indicates that perhaps the District Attorney’s Office will also conduct an investigation.

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.