Bexar County Jail Allegedly Fails to Comply with Minimum Jail Standards Continued

An inspector with the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) made the following notes about the alleged non-compliance with Rule §273.5(a)(5)–Mental Disabilities/Suicide Prevention Plan, as previously mentioned in this series.

• Jail staff members exceeded the 15-minute maximum time frame for conducting face-to-face observations on a continuous basis, as discovered when studying the observation logs for at-risk inmates. This is the operational plan that the jail proposed and was approved by TCJS.

Bexar County Jail is Allegedly Non-Compliant with Rule §275.1–Regular Observation by Jailers

At-risk prisoners are not the only ones that need to be protected with diligent supervision. The general population in county and municipal jails in Texas must be observed in staggered increments not to exceed once every 60 minutes.

• Observation logs show that the 60-minute face-to-face observation requirements were exceeded continually by between one and 126 minutes, according to the TCJS inspector.

Why is Direct Supervision Important in Jails?

Although there is no question that jailers are put more at risk by conducting the required face-to-face observations in Texas jails, inmates’ lives can be saved for numerous reasons due to strict supervision. With supervision, lives are saved because medical attention is provided more quickly and potential suicides are prevented. In addition, there are fewer assaults in jails with an officer present because supervision helps to prevent the stronger inmates from victimizing the weaker individuals.

Learn more in Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, and this ongoing series.

This website is intended as a resource of help to Texas inmates, whether now or previously incarcerated in a municipal or county jail. There is never an intention of implicating persons or organizations in acts of wrongdoing.

–Guest Contributor