The deaths of several inmates at a North Texas prison have highlighted the challenges of caring for inmates with mental illnesses and other medical conditions.
Over the past four years, three inmates at Tarrant County Jail have died from severe dehydration despite having access to water in their cells.
The first tragedy occurred in the summer of 2020, when Abdoulaye Mohammed, a bipolar man with a history of manic episodes, was arrested on charges of aggravated assault. Though his mental health was documented, his deterioration went unnoticed until it was too late.
After guards noticed he wasn’t eating his allotted meals, Mohammed was taken in a wheelchair for medical attention, where he stopped breathing and died an hour later at the hospital, according to WFAA.
A few months later, Georgia Baldwin, a mentally ill former hairdresser, was found incompetent to stand trial. A judge ordered her committed to a state psychiatric hospital. But because the wait time for a bed in such a facility can range from 200 days to about 18 months, WFAA reported, Baldwin was housed in the Tarrant County Jail in the interim.
Baldwin, who received threatening phone calls and was arrested on felony charges, showed signs of paranoia and delusions. She refused psychiatric care or medication, and her mental illness worsened while awaiting trial. She died in September 2021. Her cause of death, like Mohammed’s, was attributed to severe dehydration.
Chief Deputy Sheriff Charles Eckert, who oversaw the Tarrant County Jail at the time, told WFAA, “The Sheriff’s Department can’t hold people down and force water into their mouths. They have to make a conscious choice to walk over to the sink and drink water.”
In December 2021, Edgar Villatoro Alvarez was booked into the Tarrant County Jail. Having been hospitalized for bipolar disorder just a month earlier, he exhibited erratic behavior while in custody. Mental health workers noticed his distress multiple times, but his worsening condition was not addressed until it was too late. WFAA reported that Alvarez had stopped eating, drinking, or taking his medication several days before his death, and was found motionless in his cell in February 2022.
The deaths of Muhammad, Baldwin and Villatoro-Alvarez have prompted scrutiny of Tarrant County Jail’s policies regarding mental health care. Eckert testified that inmates are responsible for their own self-care and that the jail has no obligation to monitor their hydration.
Other inmate deaths unrelated to dehydration have also been reported at the Tarrant County Jail this year, bringing the total to six.
Last month, 35-year-old inmate Chasty Bonner died after being found unresponsive in her cell hours after refusing further medical treatment during a routine checkup.
Fox 4 KDFW reported that Bonner had been in custody on theft and parole violation charges since May 16. Her cause of death has been listed as “undetermined,” but the sheriff’s office said she was given two doses of Narcan before being transported to John Peter Smith Hospital, where she later died.
Narcan is used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
This latest incident has prompted calls for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths of inmates in the custody of the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office.
As previously reported Dallas ExpressEckert announced his retirement after nearly four years overseeing the county jail. He said his decision was unrelated to the inmate deaths.
His retirement came after he received criticism from Tarrant County commissioners following the death of 31-year-old Anthony Ray Johnson Jr., who died after being restrained following a fight with a prison guard. Johnson had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and had multiple weapons in his cell.
The Tarrant County Coroner’s Office conducted an autopsy and determined Johnson’s cause of death was homicide by mechanical and chemical asphyxiation.
Attorney Darryl Washington issued a statement on behalf of Johnson’s family, alleging that the events that led to his death included excessive restraint, the use of pepper spray and prolonged physical pressure.
Eckert, who was praised for his work thus far, defended his choice to retire, saying it was the right time after 32 years in law enforcement.
Tarrant County Commissioner Alisa Simmons sees Eckert’s retirement as an opportunity to demonstrate innovative leadership to prevent further deaths in the jail. Nevertheless, Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Robbie Hoy denied any negative comments about Eckert’s service, instead highlighting his contributions. Dallas Express.
Still, inmate deaths in North Texas aren’t limited to Tarrant County: Dallas County reported that more than a dozen inmates died in custody at its prison facilities in 2023, according to WFAA.
Two of the deaths occurred in August, one of which was listed as a natural death: Claude Joyner, 66, died of liver cancer on August 7. Charles Thomas, 41, was found unresponsive in his cell and pronounced dead on August 9. The cause of death was not reported.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 1,000 inmates die each year in U.S. prisons, and one in 10 of them are in Texas prisons, Prison Legal News reported in 2019.
