Van Zandt County, Texas Jail Fails State Inspection

The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) recently conducted an inspection of the Van Zandt County jail, located in Canton, Texas. The Van Zandt County jail failed the TCJS inspection, such inspection occurring on February 7, 2022. The Van Zandt County jail is now listed as being non-compliant with the TCJS.

The TCJS Inspector found at least three minimum standard violations. Our Texas jail abuse and neglect law firm finds, in our opinion, these violations to be serious.

First, after reviewing medication administration records, the TCJS Inspector determined that they failed to show that medications were distributed in accordance with written instructions from a doctor. This is vitally important, particularly in a jail setting. While medications could include life saving lifesaving medications such as those provided to a person with high blood pressure or diabetes, medications in a jail setting are, unfortunately, commonly used to treat mental illness. If a prisoner does not receive his or her mental illness medications, then he or she may be more prone to suicide. There is no excuse for not distributing medications in the Van Zandt County jail in accordance with written instructions from a physician.

Another serious violation pointed out in the report by the TCJS Inspector related to intake screening to identify inmates who are potentially suicidal and/or mentally disabled. The TCJS Inspector determined that Van Zandt County jail staff did not notify a magistrate within 12 hours after required by Texas law-on multiple occasions. Such notification was required when the intake officer received certain answers on the Screening Form for Suicide and Medical/Mental/Developmental Disabilities. Likewise, when a Continuity of Care Query (CCQ) returned a positive match for an inmate, the jail was required to notify a magistrate. A CCQ response can indicate prior in-patient mental health services received by an inmate. It is vitally important to notify a judge when a jail is incarcerating an inmate with mental health issues, including the tendency to commit suicide.

Finally, the TCJS inspector noted that the Van Zandt County jail did not properly observe inmates. The TCJS Inspector, when reviewing 30-minute face-to-face-observations in portions of the Van Zandt County jail where inmates were known to be mentally ill, assaultive, potentially suicidal, or exhibiting bizarre behavior, exceeded the 30-minute requirement by as few as 1 minute, but by as many as 91 minutes, on a routine basis. The fact that such is occurring on a routine basis is likely sufficient to establish, in any lawsuit filed against Van Zandt County, a custom or practice. A custom or practice of a county is particularly important when attempting to prove constitutional violations.

The United States Constitution guarantees the right of pre-trial detainees to receive reasonable medical care and mental health care, and to be protected from others and their own suicidal tendencies. If these rights are violated, and a person is injured or dies as a result, then claims may be brought in a federal lawsuit.

These problems with the Van Zandt County jail are particularly troubling, because there have been deaths of-late in the jail. Joshua Daniel Key was booked into the Van Zandt County jail on July, 9 2021. He died approximately 11 days later. Likewise, in October 2021, an inmate likely committed suicide in the jail. While we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone at the Van Zandt County jail, in this post, or related to those deaths, the failure to comply with bare minimum jail standards can often lead to serious injuries and/or death. It is particularly troubling, however, that the Van Zandt County jail would fail a February 2022 inspection after such recent deaths.

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