After 4 jail deaths in less than a year, Milwaukee County to scrutinize jail
After a series of in-custody deaths at the Milwaukee County Jail, the Board of Supervisors authorized a review Thursday into the facility's policies, procedures and practices for suicide prevention, mental and physical health assessments, and training and staffing.
The review was approved 16-1, with Supervisor Anthony Staskunas voting against the resolution.
This comes after Milwaukee County Jail has had four in-custody deaths in the last 11 months with three occurring after Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball took over the top spot at the agency in January and also while she was serving as interim sheriff after former Sherriff Earnell Lucas' departure in October 2022. There were at least five deaths during Lucas's tenure, with Ball as his deputy sheriff, between 2018 and 2022.
"This asks the Sheriff to provide us with basic information about their budget, about the conditions, about their policies and why things are going so very wrong — why we have an almost total lack of transparency and accountability for this department," said Supervisor Ryan Clancy, who co-authored the resolution.
Supervisor Felesia Martin, who co-authored the resolution, also said the jail is "grossly understaffed," which many feel has had an impact on the jail's conditions and treatment of individuals housed there awaiting trial.
The sheriff's office has been vocal about its ongoing staffing shortages, which have been in violation of a court-ordered consent decree reached in 2001 after several people in the jail sued over dangerous conditions.
"When you are working depreciated capacity, unfortunately, these types of incidents will happen when a person is now working 20 hours and they're not able to go home and get adequate rest," Martin said. "I'm not making any excuses, by far, but we also want to give a clear and accurate picture of what is happening in our facilities."
How many in-custody deaths have taken place in Milwaukee?
A little less than a year ago, 21-year-old Brieon Green died by suicide at the County Jail on June 26 four hours after his arrest at Bradford Beach. On Dec. 16, 20-year-old Cilivea Thyrion died by apparent suicide after swallowing a diaper while she was on suicide watch.
The following month 49-year-old Octaviano Juarez-Corro, whose cause of death had initially been reported as unknown and the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office at the time reported no signs of injury or trauma, showed signs of having strangled himself according to a report from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's forensic investigator.
In March, 37-year-old Terrance Mack died after he was found unresponsive in his cell during a medical check.
There were also three deaths between January 2020 and April 2021 that were investigated as suicides, and a fourth that was determined as acute heart failure, according to reports from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office.
On Wednesday, 29-year-old Antonio Bonaccorso died following an "apparent self-harm incident" at the Community Reintegration Center (CRC), formerly known as the House of Correction, according to a statement released by the Office of Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley.
The sheriff does not oversee that facility, which has its own superintendent. The report authorized Thursday will not delve into that incident.
Some of the in-custody deaths have resulted in charges against jail staff.
Most recently, a correctional officer assigned to the jail was charged with one felony count of misconduct in public office in relation to Juarez-Corro's death.
Three guards were fired or resigned following investigations into two of the deaths that happened between January 2020 and April 2021.
However, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office announced in January that it found no basis for criminal liability related to Green's death. Green family attorney B'Ivory LaMarr said Green strangled himself with a phone cord despite a jail officer walking past the cell as Green was taking his life, according to reviewed surveillance footage documenting Green's final minutes alive.
The remaining deaths in the last year are still being investigated.
What will the audit examine?
The approved audit has requested research plans and reports on the jail, including information on:
The sheriff's office budget
Intake processes
Mental and physical health assessments at intake and throughout time in the care of the jail
Medication distribution
Suicide prevention
The monitoring of high-risk individuals
Mental health treatment
Staff training, including training focused on individuals with serious mental health issues and behavioral disorders
The organizational structure of the staff responsible for operating and monitoring the jail
"Anytime anyone is within our care, we want to give them the utmost respect and make certain that they are taken care of as it speaks to their whole health, including mental health, and we want to make sure that they have adequate access to that," Martin said.
The County Board has also requested a research plan into discretionary decisions, decision-making and operational processes, including timing, related to video or bodycam footage, internal and external investigations, and internal disciplinary proceedings and investigations.
If understaffing is found to be the cause for the county not meeting standards or requirements, the sheriff's office is requested to provide information pertaining to historical and current staffing levels and the staffing level required to satisfy the standard.
The resolution also states that if the sheriff's office responds without all the requested information, it must explain the reasoning for the redaction or omission, such as legal privacy, ongoing litigation or lack of data collection.
The sheriff's office is required to provide reports, information, a research and report plan and timeline related to different parts of the approved resolution no later than Aug. 18.
Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or vswales@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Vanessa_Swales.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee County Jail faces review following 4 in-custody deaths
