Palo Pinto County Jail Fails State Inspection

The Palo Pinto County jail, in Palo Pinto, Texas, is now listed as being non-compliant by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (“TCJS”). The TCJS inspected the jail on March 11, 2021. The Palo Pinto County jail allegedly violated three minimum jail standards.

The TCJS inspector, when reviewing documentation, found that the documentation failed to show that the jail generator was tested at least once each week. The TCJS inspector also determined, when reviewing disciplinary documentation, that inmates sanctioned to segregation cells for minor infractions exceeded fifteen days on a regular basis. The TCJS inspector also found that inmates sanctioned to segregation cells for major infractions exceeded thirty days on a regular basis. This could implicate constitutional concerns, specifically punishing a pre-trial detainee who has been accused of nothing. Such actions could violate the 14^th Amendment, under the right circumstances.

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.