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| Critics Call for More Screening of New Prisoners in Maine |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 07/31/2002 |
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Jail administrators need to screen new prisoners better for mental health problems that could lead to suicide, corrections officials and advocates for prisoners rights said in the wake of the most recent inmate death. Critics said the apparent suicide of a mentally ill Somerset County jail inmate over the weekend illustrates the need for increased vigilance. The death of Joseph Hayes, 20, of Skowhegan would be the fifth prison suicide in Maine this year. Hayes was found hanged with a bedsheet Saturday, a week and a half after he was brought to jail on a charge of violating his probation. An autopsy Monday confirmed the cause of death, pending a blood test. Hayes was last checked about an hour and a half before his body was found, said State Police Sgt. James Urquhart. Brian Wallace, coordinator of the Prison Law Project for the Maine Civil Liberties Union, said the fact Hayes was being treated for mental illness just prior to his arrival at the jail should have been a red flag for jail officials that he needed special consideration. ''It's not necessarily a situation that Somerset County Jail didn't do what it's supposed to do, but in general the jails just do not have a system in place to take care of individuals with these needs,'' said Wallace, who has investigated other jail suicides. Wallace said the tally of five suicides in correctional facilities in Maine this year suggests there could be a systemic problem. Cumberland County Sheriff Mark Dion, president of the Maine Sheriff's Association, said corrections officers need to explore an inmate's mental health as part of the admitting process. ''The families want to know, 'Did we take reasonable steps to assess their potential for suicide?' If we did, it's an unfortunate circumstance. If we didn't, then the organization has to change that procedure,'' Dion said. ''The dignity of the community at large is determined by how well you treat people in custody.'' Dion has lobbied for other jails to become nationally accredited as a way to achieve consistency when they evaluate new inmates. So far, only Cumberland County Jail has received national accreditation, though the state prison system also is working toward that goal. ''Somehow the oversight of the prisoners has gone by the wayside, it seems to me,'' said Patrick Mellor, a lawyer representing the family of an inmate who hanged himself in the mental health unit at Maine State Prison this spring. The family of Adam Dupuis, 25, has filed a claim accusing the state of violating the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment by withholding proper medical care. |
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