'Pronounced dereliction.' Family of inmate stabbed in courtroom sues Shelby County, sheriff

A federal lawsuit has been filed against Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, Shelby County government and Chief Jailer Kirk Fields on behalf of a Shelby County Jail inmate who was fatally stabbed by another inmate while in a holding area of the Shelby County Criminal Courthouse.

The lawsuit, filed Jan. 24, alleges that Bonner, Fields and the county have intentionally neglected the jail and that Bonner and Fields have been derelict in overseeing the jail.

The inmate who was killed, Deion Byrd, was stabbed inside a holding pod connected to Shelby County Criminal Court Division 1 in October. The inmate who stabbed him, Donnie Clay, has since been charged with first-degree murder.

"Mr. Byrd’s killing did not happen in a vacuum," the lawsuit said. "It resulted from certain policies and customs of the Shelby County government which have created a jail more dangerous than nearly every prison in Tennessee combined, and the pronounced dereliction of Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner and Chief Jailer Kirk Fields. The county’s practices, and Sheriff Bonner and Chief Fields’ derelict leadership made a scene like what unfolded on October 26, 2023 all but inevitable."

In furthering allegations that Byrd's death was inevitable due to the conditions inside 201 Poplar, the lawsuit points to a previous U.S. Department of Justice review. In 2000, the DOJ conducted a review of the jail and found that it was understaffed and overpopulated. In a settlement, one of the DOJ's requirements was that the jail increase staffing to adequately supervise the jail's inmates.

The lawsuit alleges that Byrd's death at 201 Poplar is a direct result of the jail not following those directives.

"Under Sheriff Bonner and Chief Fields the death rate inside the jail more than tripled: it rose from 1.67 deaths per thousand inmates in 2019 to 5.8 deaths per thousand inmates in 2022," the lawsuit said. "According to numbers Sheriff Bonner and Chief Fields published to Shelby County’s legislative authority, the Board of County Commissioners, the number of total assaultive offenses reported in the jail increased from 595 in 2019, 734 in 2020, 798 in 2021, to 855 in 2022 — a 44% increase since Sheriff Bonner took office. According to the same data, the number of inmate-on-inmate assaults for the calendar years 2019-2022 increased from 505 in 2019, 462 in 2020, 527 in 2021, to 567 in 2022 — a 12% increase since Sheriff Bonner took office."

Lawyers for Byrd's family, who are bringing the lawsuit, noted a 2021 assault where an inmate, who they allege had a violent history that included killing a cellmate, beat another inmate at the jail with a pillowcase filled with portions of concrete blocks he had carved off the wall. According to the lawsuit, the man who was beaten was "permanently injured."

At the time of that assault, according to the lawsuit, no guards or Shelby County Sheriff's Office staff was in the pod or monitoring the pod.

"In fact, the Shelby County’s Daily Staff Status documentation reflects over 80 vacant posts that day, and an additional 23 officers who were off that day," the lawsuit read. "The shift log also indicates that 125 officers were needed at a minimum to run the shift, when in fact only 49 officers and 10 sergeants were present."

The lawsuit drew a parallel between that incident and Byrd's killing, noting that "Inmate Clay had a violent criminal record that the [jail] knew and documented, which made Inmate Clay a substantial risk to any other detainees, including the deceased."

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When Byrd was stabbed, no deputies were monitoring the holding area, and Clay threw the makeshift knife after a deputy ran inside after yelling.

The lawsuit also cites former Shelby County mayor, and the sheriff who oversaw the DOJ policy changes in the early 2000s, Mark Luttrell telling Fox13 that the findings from that DOJ inspection were that the "jail was woefully deficient." He was quoted by Fox13 as saying it is "disheartening to see that we’ve come back to that point. It’s déjà vu."

The lawsuit also cites two different independent inspectors' reports from the jail that were taken between 2020 and 2022. Both found that the jail was understaffed and that the lack of staffing "result in unsafe conditions at the Shelby County Jail."

One of the inspectors, Rick Wells, noted that the problems caused by understaffing the jail were being compounded by the jail becoming overpopulated.

The lawsuit also alleges that the pay structure of the Shelby County Sheriff's Office places emphasis on patrol officers and underpays jail deputies.

"Ultimately, Shelby County, and Sheriff Bonner individually, are specifically making a conscious decision to ensure any applicants to the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department first and foremost attempt to gain employment as a patrol office, and are thus exhibiting deliberate indifference to the needs, safety and wellbeing of the inmates under their control and protection all for the bottom dollar of Shelby County," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit requests an unspecified amount in compensatory damages, along with punitive damages and attorney's fees be paid by the county.

The Shelby County Sheriff's Office said it could not comment on pending litigation.

Lucas Finton is a criminal justice reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com, or (901)208-3922, and followed on X, formerly known as Twitter, @LucasFinton.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Family Deion Byrd sues Shelby County, sherrif after stabbing death