Simon Peter Douglas Commits Suicide in Harris County, Texas Jail

The Harris County Sheriff’s Department, in Houston, Texas, filed a custodial death report regarding the death of Simon Peter Douglas. Mr. Douglas was only 41 years old at the time of his death. We provide information we obtained from that report, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Department chose not to provide any information in response to the following fields in the custodial death report: Death Code; Manner of Death Description; Code of Charges; Custody Code; Medical Treatment Description; and Intoxicated. The Harris County Sheriff’s Department did indicate in the report that Mr. Douglas exhibited mental health problems. In response to the question as to whether Mr. Douglas made any suicidal statements, the Harris County Sheriff’s Department responded, “Unknown.”

The summary portion of the report reads in its entirety:

“On February 10, 2022, the decedent was arrested by the Houston Police Department and transported to the Harris County Joint Processing Center. During the booking process, the decedent was placed into a single cell due to his aggressive and erratic behavior. While inside the single cell, the decedent removed a piece of lining in his jail issued clothing and attempted to hang himself. Detention officers entered the cell and struggled to handcuff the decedent as he struggled with officers. The decedent was handcuffed and moved to a single cell padded room. While inside the padded room, the handcuffed decedent continually ran his head into the walls, door, and a metal grate on the floor of the cell. Detention staff entered the cell and removed him onto a stretcher. The decedent was transported to the clinic and subsequently to Ben Taub Hospital where he was pronounced deceased at 7:21 a.m. by a medical doctor.”

If jailers knew that Mr. Douglas was suicidal, they should not have allowed him to be in a cell with any material with which he could form a ligature. It is a far too common occurrence in Texas county jails for an inmate to commit suicide using ligature. Inmates will use phone cords, items of clothing, bed sheets, and mattress material. The United States Constitution guarantees the right of inmates in Texas county jails to be protected from known suicidal tendencies. They also have the right to receive reasonable medical care and mental health care. If jailers are deliberately indifferent to such needs, and/or a county’s policies, practices, and/or customs lead to the death of an inmate, then certain surviving family members might be able to file a lawsuit and bring federal claims.

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.