Inmate Suicides

[Darkwulfe]

Just recently we had a man hang himself. He had just recently been released after serving 11 months in our facility. Got pulled over about a week after getting out and decided to run from the cops yet again. He ended up back in our Detention Center with a huge list of charges and no chance of getting out for at least another year with possible Prison time afterwards. Two weeks later he hung himself with a bed sheet.

Since then our facility has been a mess. Almost 2 people a week have quit. Everyone blames everyone else, countless meetings on policy changes and what we did wrong. Increased tention between inmates and staff. Numorous news reports stating how awful our facility is. To say the least it has been very stressfull. I was not working the day it happened, and so did not experience the actual event first hand. I was called in that night to releive those that were involved though.

I was just wondering if anyone has ever had to deal with this and what your facility did to help ease tention. Since then the "team" feeling we used to have between staff has totaly disapeared.

I still really enjoy my work, but this has just made it a more stressfull environment.

[JKT]

DW,

Your co-workers have my heartfelt sympathy, as does the family of the deceased.


I have literally cut two down over the past 20 years, and have responded to at least 4 or 5 more. Even if there a medical/suicide screening done upon intake, it doesn

[Darkwulfe]

Thanks for your help. This particular inmate had always been unstable. I wrote countless reports on his behavior, mood swings, and suicidle tendencies. When an inmate imposes a possible suicide threat we move them to a holding cell next to our intake room where most everything happens. The inmate is striped down to nothing, given a horse hair blanket and put on 15 minute checks. A mental health rep is brought in a long with a chaplain if they so choose to talk with them. The cell is monitored by a control officer using a camera. This particular inmate had been moved to this cell many times before for a few days at a time until his demenor changed. At the time he was housed back in a cell block with the population. He hung himself in his cell during lockdown. I have no idea on how he was acting that day or the previous days because it happened on my Monday, just before I got on shift.

This is the first inmate death I have had to deal with since coming to this facility. I have responded to 4 suicide attempts in the past where the wrists were cut but none ended in death. Responding to inmate on inmate assaults is a comon thing too but none have resulted in death.

It sure is different at this county jail compared to the supermax. Everything seems to get so personal here where as at the bigger facility you just did your job and never really got involved. It was run so different compared to the warm and fuzzy county jail. This has made it a little hard over all too.

[JKT]

As I said, if they are serious, no-one will stop them.

The main difference I see between Prisons and Jails (I 'm presuming the "supermax" you refer to is a Prison) is that in a county jail, mostly what is in custody is pre-trial detainees, while the prison has convicts.

Convicts act a whole lot different as a whole. They tend to be more adjusted to institutional life than their county-level counterparts.

Most of the successful suicides I've seen in Detention facilities have been by hanging. They don't have to hold any contraband, they can just use what they have access to. Most of the wrist-slashings I've seen haven't been too serious.

I have, however, seen 2 stabbings (self-inflicted) with ball-point pens that were pretty nasty.

It's amazing what they come up with isn't it?


The State mental health authority is pretty helpful here. They have regular sessions with the inmates and are willing to talk with any Officers that wish to talk. In other words, they are at our place 3 or 4 times per week average.

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Optimistic pessimist: Hope for the best, but expect the worst.

Jack

JKT@guardroom.com

[This message has been edited by JKT (edited 05-13-2001).]

[Darkwulfe]

Just to clear it up the supermax is a prison. We held about 400 inmates while I was there, all sentenced and maximum security. You were not sentenced to this facility; you earned your way there by being a problem at another facility. We held both federal and state convicts.

You are right, pre-trial detainees and sentenced inmates are two very different groups. And when someone has their mind set on suicide your not going to stop them, they will eventually succeed.

From my experience, those that really want to die hang themselves; those that are looking for attention cut their wrists.

And you are right; it is insane what these people can think of in their cells. Making everything from roses with tissue paper, hacky sacks out of peas from dinner and sheets, shanks out of food trays, tattoo guns out of a ball point pen and a walk man. Everything we seize like that is put in storage and brought out for training seminars. Makes you think about how much of a waste it is to have some of these brains locked up. They could be doing so much more with the ingenuity they have.


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Darkwulfe
darkwulfe@hotmail.com

"Beaten Paths are for Beaten Men"

[Buddingnovelist]

Darkwolfe, you are clearly affected by this incident and for that I applaud you. It means you are human.

Has your facility done a critical incident defusing or debreifing with regards ot his incident? If not, I suggest you request one. If they don't listen, contact maybe your community mental health and request one.

When someone gets killed, there is trauma. When someone takes his own life, there is guilt. You have to deal with this. Do something. Something!

You have to take care of YOU!

Chris

[Darkwulfe]

There was a debriefing, but it only involved the officers who immediatly responded to the incident. I have been to debriefings for past incidents though. This particular incident has not affected me mentally that I have noticed. It is sad that he is gone but life goes on. There is regret, and one does question their job performance and what they could have done better. But I was merely stating how there is increased tension between everyone in our facility now because of it. Thank you for your concern.

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Darkwulfe
darkwulfe@hotmail.com

"Beaten Paths are for Beaten Men"

[Don]

I will have to say that I've never been through this. I was lucky in my time in the jail I guess.

But what I am really wondering about is why there is increased tension among the staff. Do you have folks doing some finger pointing and trying to say that somebody did not do their job? Do you have COMMAND doing this?

If you do, it is my belief they are looking for a "scapegoat" for the civil suit that will surely follow! If that is the case, you may have yourself a department that you would be better off without!

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"I'm just a "senior teen-ager!"
6P1 (retired)

[wonderwoman]

Gee, I am a bit surprised by this reaction. I have led many Critical Incident Stress Debriefings and found more bonding then anything UNLESS staff knew in their minds the death coud have been prevented if someone had done their job!

I am curious, do you work in a small facility? and do you work in a small community?

Debriefing is usually initially offered to those at the scene or involved in the event. However, no one who asked to attend was ever turned away. In addition if it was found to be benefical that additional debriefing occur, it isn't a problem.
Do you have Employee Assistance Programs? Was this the first suicide ever for the facility? That could have an impact.

I hope you have been able to get some help. Don't forget to ask if you need it!


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Treat every day as the most precious day you have!