The Andrews County Sheriff’s Office is located at 201 North Main, Room 113, Andrews, Texas 79714. The phone number is (432) 523-5545.

The jail in Andrews County is run by the Sheriff’s Office. Jail standards provided by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) outline requirements of minimum standards of care for prisoners, which sheriff’s offices are usually responsible for in county jail facilities.

Three standards that are most frequently associated with accusations of misconduct and custodial deaths in Texas jails are prisoner supervision, mental health matters, and medical care.

Prisoner Supervision

A basic requirement with regard to supervising prisoners in county jails is to ensure that the facility has the appropriate number of jail staff 24 hours per day. In addition, face-to-face inmate observations by jailers must be conducted and documented in intervals of no more than every 60 minutes. For at-risk inmates, such as the mentally ill or potentially suicidal prisoners, observations are required every half hour at the most.

Mental Health Care

A suicide prevention and mental disabilities plan must be developed and implemented by the Sheriff or jail operator for each city or county jail facility in Texas. The required procedures include training of staff. For instance, members of the staff should have training in the recognition, supervision, documentation, and handling of prisoners who are suicidal or have mental health issues.

Medical Care

The issue most commonly targeted for complaints in Texas jails is medical care for prisoners. The jail standards with regard to provision of medical care lack detail. For instance, the medical services which are provided in a jail facility may include the services of a licensed physician, professional, and hospital or similar services. The health plans must, however, be approved by the TCJS.

This post is provided for informational purposes. There is no intention in this or any other post on the site to imply or suggest wrongdoing or misconduct on the part of the Andrews County Sheriff’s Office, the Andrews jail facility, any organization, or any person.

–Guest Contributor