The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office filed a custodial death report, on July 16, 2019, regarding the death of Jarnell Kimble. Mr. Kimble passed away on March 29, 2019. Therefore, it appears that the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office violated Texas law by not filing a custodial death report within 30 days after Mr. Kimble’s death. Regardless, as to the cause of Mr. Kimble’s death, we make no allegation of any wrongdoing. Instead, we are providing in this post information obtained from that report.
Mr. Kimble was only 45 years of age at the time of his death. He was originally incarcerated in the Bexar County jail, in San Antonio, Texas, on February 28, 2019. The report’s summary provides very little information. The summary indicates that, on March 29, 2019, at approximately 10:34 a.m., a medical code was announced for Mr. Kimble after he was found unresponsive in his cell. When medical staff arrived, the code was upgraded to “Code 1 Blue.” EMS were dispatched, and Mr. Kimble was transported to Metropolitan Methodist Hospital. Mr. Kimble was pronounced deceased at 10:52 p.m.
The custodial death report indicates that Mr. Kimble died from diabetic ketoacidosis. Diabetic ketoacidosis is a life-threatening issue that affects people with diabetes. It happens when a person’s body begins to break down fat at a rate that is too fast. The liver then processes the fat into a fuel called ketones. This in turn causes the person’s blood to become acidic.
Diabetic ketoacidosis can be the first sign of Type 1 diabetes for people who have not yet been diagnosed. It can also occur as a result of infection, a series illness, injury, surgery, or missing doses of insulin shots for people with Type 1 diabetes.
We have no idea as to what happened to Mr. Kimble and which caused his diabetic ketoacidosis. However, if Mr. Kimble had physician orders requiring that he be provided insulin, and jail staff were deliberately indifferent to the doctor’s orders and failed to provide insulin, the jail staff could be liable to certain of Mr. Kimble’s family members for his death. Such potential liability arises under the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Texas prisoners are entitled to receive reasonable medical care.
