Wrongful death while in jail??

Question

My brother was 19 when he hung himself while in a holding cell for DUI chrages. We were all surprised at his death, but now, 6 months later, people are starting to ask me if he was murdered. I dont know if people dont want to admit that he commited suicide, or of I really should be looking into this. I dont know if you could sue that jail, and if I did, what kind of chance would I have at winning? Would it be a waste of time draging up horrible memories, or is it worth it to maybe save a life down the road? My mom was the last to talk to him, when he got his "one phone call." She said he sounded fine, but 20 minutes later he hung himself. In the news papers following my brothers death, the jailers on duty that night said they had "no comment" on why my brother wasn't being checked on every ten minutes like they are apparantly supposed to do. Something sounds fishy, and I know no amount of money can bring my brother back, but a little justice would be nice. Can anyone help?

Thankyou for all the great info. I guess what I want to know is how you could kill yourself while in the care of the police. Cops are suppeosed to protect and serve. Not put you in a holding cell with things you can use to hang yourself. I have never gotten a straight answer as to what he used. I've heard it was his jeans, or a t-shirt. But arent you given a suit to wear in jail? And if you arent given a suit to wear, then why, when we went to get his belongings from the jail, were his jeans and tshirt there? Shouldnt they have been at the hospital where he was pronounced dead? I'm just so mad that all this happened in the county's care. It seems like the county (or at least the one I live in) is just there to make money. I know atleast 50 people with DWI's or DUI's. Good people, with jobs and famalies. And I know of about 20 people who sell meth, and do meth. People with nothing, people who ruin famalies. Why arent they getting punnished. Its not fair. I feel he could still be here.

Answer 1

First off, I want to tell you sorry about the loss of your brother. Especially at the age he was. When something like that happens it is always a tragedy.

Honestly, it would more than likely be a waste of your time and money and would really be digging up bad memories. I really would not be listening to anyone say that it might have been a murder. If it was a murder, then it surely wouldn't have been made to look like he hung himself. Inmates in a jail wouldn't care enough to make it look like he did that to himself, and if the guards were to have been the ones that supposedly done the crime, then they will for sure get what happens to them. I know for a fact that when something like that happens there is a very large investigation that happens and it involves investigators from a few different agencies outside of that county. Such as a couple of state agencies.

There are many ways that an inmate can hang themselves. With their own clothes, the issues the jail gives them, or even leaning himself against something able to make a wedge around the throat and cuts off the blood flow to the brain and the airway. You said that he was in a holding cell. Some departments do not issue jail clothing to inmates until they are to be moved back to general population.

You said that they guards were supposed to check on him every ten minutes. Well, the only reason they would have to check on him every ten minutes would be if he was on a suicide watch. He could be put on that if he expressed to the guards or officers that he felt like the wanted to kill himself, or if the guards or officers felt at the time that he was a danger to himself. I would not worry to much about the jailers saying "no comment" to the media when asked questions about the situation. Most departments have regulations saying that no one can talk to the media about specific incidents at all. That is why they usually leave it up to some sort of person designated for public relations or maybe even the jail admisitrator. In the even that he was on a suicide watch or something like that, and the jailers faulted by not checking on him as often as they needed to, they will more than likely be criminaly charged. Even if they are, there will still be no reason for you to sue unless you honestly have the best lawyer in the land.

You are right. Cops are there to protect and to serve. However, the cops had nothing to do with this. Once the police officer drops him off in the jail, he becomes the custody of the jail. Part of the jailer's job is to insure the safety of the inmates. That comes from protecting them from other inmates, and even themselves sometimes. Sometimes though, there are things that can slip through the cracks. The jailers can do there job perfectly and things can still happen. The inmates will wait till the guards turn their back or go do something else that they need to take care of, and do whatever it is that the inmate wants to do.

Your anger in this situation is understandable, as well as in good reason. It is a tragic incident, but I can tell you that if there was some foul play done by the staff by the jail, those individuals will get the trouble that they need. Like I said though, trying to file a lawsuit will honestly be most likely a waste of your time.

I hope this has helped you to understand a few things, and again I am sorry for your loss. I hope that you will be alright after this traumatic loss of life.

Good luck with it all...

Answer 2

The very best thing that you can do is call an attorney. It is true that the 10-minute rule may not apply if he was not on suicide watch, but that actually depends on the jail. Many check that often anyway. Does this jail? Did they follow proper protocol? How did he hang himself? Didn't anyone hear anything? There are so many different rules and regulations that differ from place to place, and there are so many ways that your brother's specific case could fall through the cracks. There are so many questions that need to be asked. It is true, as someone said, that an investigation would have been done, but who did it? What were their motivations? Was the investigation done properly? Most of the time it will be, but there are NO guarantees. If you let the beaurocracy do everything for you, your brother's death may never receive the attention it really deserves. All you have to do is pick up a newspaper in any given week and you'll find numerous accounts of jails and prisons and other government agencies totally dropping the ball. Mistakes are made. Corruption occurs. These things do NOT happen the majority of the time, but you just never know.

Odds are there was nothing that could have been done and no one was at fault, but if it were MY brother, I would want to KNOW what happened and why. I would not want to spend the rest of my life wondering about it. It would eat me alive, and I would want to ensure that no one else had to go through the same thing. I'd call an attorney right now. I'm really sorry for your loss. I hope you find some answers and closure. Good luck!

Answer 3

What I would do is not jump to any conclusions, or have any aticipations for a specific outcome, which it sounds like this is where you are. Next, write two letters, one to your local county commissioner's office requesting an investigation into this incident. Also, send a similiar letter to the "State Board Of Prisons," requesting a seperate inquiry into the matter.
Here's the deal, of what to expect, even though i have never gone through this. The commissiner's will be a fact finding investigation only. They will report back with exactly what happened and when it happened, and who was on duty, and who worked that station, at that time. In short, the facts, last time they checked on him, time found deceased, and what actions were taken.

The inquiry will interview the persons working, do a seperate fact finding, and compare all of this with the standard procedure. You see, you should not get into the whole lawyer ( law suit) thing unless you have solid reason to believe something was wrong.
Remember, often people will see being in jail as a total end, and think they can never survive inside, so would rather die than live in here, or similiar ideas. When i was in for my one stretch i seen about four people kill themselves in a similiar fashion. Two were done in holding cells up front, and they were not on suicide watch. You only get on suicide watch if you have a mental health issue in your past, or information is conveyed to the prison that the person may be suicidal, attempted to kill himself at the time of the arrest, for example

Answer 4

When someone is jailed for even a common, petty crime, there's supposed to be NOTHING left in that holding cell in which they could hang or injure themselves with.

You could bring about charges and a suit based on that alone.

Even though he "sounded fine" you still have to take into consideration that if he was caught for DUI that means he was drunk...and drunk people are unpredictable at times. He might have been trying to get attention to get at the guards and accidentally took it too far...or he might have considered the consequenses and did it for real. There's is always the chance that there was foul play, but it would be really hard to prove.

There still shouldn't have been anything in there that he could have killed himself with. Period. No belt, no shoelaces, nothing that could be torn into strips...NOTHING.

Be ready for a long court battle if you choose that route and make sure you get an attorney from out of town. Any local lawyer wouldn't touch this one with someone else's gloves....a negligence suit against the local PD can get nasty and I would be afraid to stay in the same town after the case, especially if you win. Beforehand if you go that route, contact a national news service to at least have the protection of the ever-present watch of the media on your side to deter any possible retaliation. There's no guarantee it won't happen, but it would be the best you have since it's doubtful you could ask the police department for protection.

If you live in a small town, be ready for private citizens to bash you and the character of your brother.

I'm sorry to hear about your loss. In my opinion, pursuing this would bring more pain and tears and wouldn't even ensure closure.

Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

Answer 5

My cousins cause of death was ruled suicide and my family and I have always doubted that. My cousin was going to turn over evidence on a drug dealer that was selling at his high school. So when he died the first thought from the Police should have been to treat this as a homicide, but nope because the dealer he was going to testify against is the nephew of the Sheriff. We can't make the connection stick. I guess what I am saying is that knowing one thing and proving it, is very hard. In the end it's what you know in your heart. He was murdered, we all know it, even those who don't want us to know, know it!

Answer 6

I agree, don't bring up the old memories. I assure you that every death that occurs in custody is very well investigated by many agencies. I'm sure your brother's was also. It is very sad but sometimes alcohol and remorse have a bad reaction like this. That is why they are checked regularly. The "no comment" is standard for this type of scenario as it was probably still an active investigation.

Answer 7

Unfortunately, I disagree with the concept that somehow other people bore any responsibility for your brother's suicide. That's on his head alone. Millions of people have been in his shoes and didn't even think about committing suicide. I've been in worse situations and never even thought about such a useless act.

I'm sorry for your loss, but I will never agree with any ruling that an adult is somehow not fully responsible for his or her own actions.

Answer 8

Listen, this is a traggic story. No one will ever know why or how. This is an issue that only God can handle. You need to let go of the idea of some one paying for his death before it makes you hateful. God will handle this in his way. I pray your brother was saved. God bless his soul and you and your family.

Answer 9

If he wasn't on suicide watch, the 10 minute rule does not apply. Who knows why intoxicated or even sober people do something so horrible.

Answer 10

Why is your avatar smiling? Get some advice from a lawyer. Something does sound wrong here.