Current news about inmates in local jails, both in Texas and other states, shows many deaths that have occurred in recent days, weeks, and months.

When people are placed in a county or city jail, they are initially to be considered innocent until proven guilty. Jail is not meant to be a place where people are at a heightened risk of dying by any means. Statistics tend to support that the rate of death by natural causes in local jails is similar to numbers among the rest of the population. Tragically, however, the rate of suicide in jails is significantly higher than the suicide rate among those who are not incarcerated.

Without providing intricate details, the following are glimpses of some of these recent stories:

• A 79-year-old man in a Florida county jail was housed in a medical unit, and he was found unresponsive at 8:00 AM on July 26, 2022. An initial investigation shows that the death was likely caused by a medical event. Detectives found no signs of foul play or trauma of any kind. The cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner. The man had been housed at the jail since March 2022 and was awaiting trial.
• On Saturday, July 23, 2022, a 67-year-old man in a California county jail was found suffering from an apparent medical emergency. He was on the floor of his single jail cell in a semi-conscious state. The inmate was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The man had been in jail for 10 days before his death. He used a wheelchair and was housed in the infirmary area because of ongoing medical issues that were associated with long-term illicit drug use. Security camera videos at the jail were reviewed for the hours leading up to the man’s death, and there were no signs of nefarious activity. The inmate suffered no visible injuries or signs of trauma.

Learn more in this ongoing series.

This website seeks to help inmates now or previously detained in county and city jails by providing helpful information. There is never an intention on this site of accusing a person or entity of participation in misdeeds.

–Guest Contributor