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| Deaths prompt changes at jail |
| By Tri-Valley Herald |
| Published: 04/25/2005 |
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The deaths of two inmates at the San Joaquin County (Calif.) Jail in 2003 prompted changes that could help prevent similar tragedies in the future, according to a grand jury report. The San Joaquin County grand jury's latest investigation into booking procedures at the county jail in French Camp is a follow-up to a report last year on the deaths of inmates Mondez Denmon and Merle Scott in two separate incidents. Denmon, 34, died in a Sept. 5, 2003, struggle with jailers after he broke free from his leather restraints in a medical observation cell. Scott died in October 2003, after falling down a flight of stairs at the jail. The medical examiner later determined Scott died of methamphetamine toxicity and heart disease. Last years grand jury investigation into the deaths found the five-point leather straps used to secure Denmon were old and pliable. After Denmon broke a strap securing his waist, an excessive number of officers 11 became involved in the struggle to secure him, the report said. The medical examiner later determined that Denmon, who had been pepper sprayed and given a sedative and an anti-psychotic drug shortly before the incident, suffocated. Four staff members at the jail were disciplined after the incident, and two officers were indicted. Although the criminal charges were dismissed, the county paid $900,000 in February to settle civil lawsuits brought by Denmon's parents. The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office has since created a Critical Emergency Response Team (CERT) to safely extract problem inmates from cells at the jail, and such incidents are videotaped. In its follow-up report, the grand jury noted that the sheriff's office has also instituted policies to make sure restraints at the jail are in good condition, and that it has replaced some leather restraints with sturdier plastic ones. Assistant Sheriff John Drummond said that, although the old leather restraints had never failed, Denmon "was a really strong individual, who tore a couple of them." Drummond said the sheriff's office found the restraints were improperly maintained. To disinfect the straps after each use, "They were being soaked for hours on end in a bleach solution, which weakens them," Drummond said. Inmates who require restraints are now placed on their backs in bed, with a foam pillow elevating their heads, the grand jury reported. Grand jury foreman Dave White of Manteca said the follow-up report was intended to assess whether the sheriff's office has worked to address problems identified in the original investigation. The investigation into Scott's death questioned why the longtime heroin addict did not receive medical attention when he was booked into the jail. |
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