Use of force in Pa. jails common with mentally compromised inmates; 2/3 of people in U.S. jails are just awaiting trial

(Mixed media by Tom Downing, WITF)

In its investigation into Pennsylvania's county jails, WITF, the state's public television station, found that "One in three uses of force from 25 jails during the last three months of 2021 involved a person who was having a mental health crisis or who had a diagnosed mental illness," Brett Sholtis reports. "The situation brings risks ranging from lasting psychological trauma to death."

In the U.S., "two-thirds of people in jails are there pre-trial — meaning they haven’t been convicted of a crime. Most are there on nonviolent charges such as parole violation, theft, drunkenness and drug possession," Sholtis reports. "Though their time in jail may be relatively short, those who fail to adapt can pay a heavy price."

One story Sholtis provided: "When police found Ishmail Thompson, he was standing naked outside a Dauphin County hotel, where he had just punched a man. A mental-health specialist working with the county prison said Thompson should be sent to a hospital for psychiatric care. But at the hospital, a doctor ran some tests and cleared him to return to jail. At the jail, when corrections officers tried to strip-search Thompson, he ran into a shower where he was 'wetting himself down,' prison records show. An officer pepper-sprayed him in the face and tried to take him to the ground. Thompson fought back. Staff flooded the area, handcuffing and shackling him. . . . About 20 minutes later, an officer saw that Thompson was taking 'short, abnormal breaths.' Five days later, Thompson died. The district attorney said no criminal charges would be filed."

Sholtis writes, "Most uses of force don’t lead to death — and the coroner did not determine whether Thompson’s death was due to being pepper-sprayed and restrained. But the practices corrections officers employ every day in Pennsylvania county jails can put prisoners and staff at risk of injury and can hurt vulnerable people who may be scheduled to return to society within months."

Craig Haney, a psychology professor at the University of California Santa Cruz, who specializes in prison conditions told Sholtis, "Some mentally ill prisoners are so traumatized by the abuse that they never recover, some are driven to suicide, and others are deterred from bringing attention to their mental health problems because reporting these issues often results in harsher treatment." While use of force is needed "for officers to prevent violence against others. However, records obtained by WITF show that a significant number of uses of force are against people who are not hurting anyone else," Sholtis reports. "WITF found that one in five uses of force — 88 incidents — involve a prisoner who was either attempting suicide, hurting themselves or threatening self-harm. Common responses by prison staff included what was used on Thompson — a restraint chair and pepper-spray. In some cases, officers used electroshock devices such as stun guns."