Matthew Ray Maxwell Dies After Being in Wichita Falls, Texas Jail

The Wichita County Sheriff’s department, in Wichita Falls, Texas, filed a report regarding the custodial death of Matthew Ray Maxwell. Mr. Maxwell was only 32 years old at the time of his death. We provide in this post information we obtained from that report, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone.

The report indicates that Mr. Maxwell was originally in custody at 12:52 p.m. on March 28, 2022. It also indicates that he passed away just a few days later, on April 1, 2022 at 1:02 p.m. The report lists no medical cause of death, indicating that the autopsy is pending.

The summary portion of the report reads in its entirety:

“Inmate came into custody on 3/28/2022 denying any medical issues. On 4/1/2022 inmate was observed in general population in the shower area by the tier officer. Inmate was complaining of abdominal pain. Inmate was taken to the medical clinic to be evaluated by medical staff. Medical staff evaluated inmate and requested inmate be placed in the medical separation to be observed. At approximately 1200, while medical staff was providing medication to the inmate, he became unresponsive. Life saving measures were immediately started and AMR was notified. Inmate was transported to United Regional Health Care System in Wichita Falls Texas, where he was pronounced deceased at 1302.”

Civil rights law, pursuant to the United States Constitution, provides that people who are incarcerated in Texas county jails receive reasonable medical care. If jailers and/or others are deliberately indifferent to known serious medical needs of a Texas county jail inmate, or they act unreasonably regarding those needs, and the inmate dies as a result, then certain surviving family members may be able to bring a lawsuit regarding those claims. These lawsuits are typically filed in federal court by attorneys who handle jail abuse, neglect, and/or suicide cases.

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.