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Per a Jail Re-Inspection Report, Sutton County Jail in Sonora, Texas, Allegedly Violated Four Standards

English: The Courthouse located in Sonora, Tex...
English: The Courthouse located in Sonora, Texas, United States. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 15, 1977. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Inspectors with the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) released a Jail Re-inspection Report earlier this year that included information about four alleged violations at Sutton County Jail in Sonora, Texas. Jails have a responsibility to meet minimum jail standards. They help to ensure the safety and well-being of inmates, staff members, and visitors. Inmates frequently suffer harm and sometimes succeed in committing suicide, as a result of the failure of a jail’s employees to meet mandatory guidelines.

The following is information about two of the alleged violations of jail standards at Sutton County Jail:

Inspectors with TCJS say that medical files were reviewed, and it was discovered that an inmate had submitted a sick call that was refused by members of the jail staff on April 23, 2017. Notes indicated that the inmate allegedly refused to take medication that had been prescribed by the doctor. As a result, the request made by the inmate to see the doctor was never scheduled. The jail standards dictate that every facility must have and carry out a written plan with regard to inmate medical, dental, and mental services. The plan is to include procedures for regularly scheduled sick calls as well as a prescribed course of action for referral for medical, dental, and mental services.

Another discovery made during inspection of medical files was that the staff at Sutton County Jail was allegedly failing to follow the doctors’ orders with regard to dispensing of medication, which allegedly occurred several times. When questioned, jail staff explained that the inmate involved had been refusing the medication. They failed, however, to log the refusal. They also failed to advise the doctor that the medication was being refused.

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–Guest Contributor

Written By: author image smchugh
author image smchugh