INMATES
INMATES WHO ARE SUPPOSED TO BE SENT TO A STATE HOSPITAL FOR TREATMENT - ARE INSTEAD
SITTING BEHIND BARS.
AND A NEW KVUE DEFENDERS
INVESTIGATION FOUND -- THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE
WHO HAVE TO WAIT
FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN
TEXAS JAILS IS
GROWING- FAST.
GROWING- FAST. HERE'S INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
BRAD STREICHER.
BRAD STREICHER. IF A JUDGE FINDS SOMEONE IN JAIL
MENTALLY INCOMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL. USUALLY THEY'RE
SENT TO A STATE
FACILITY FOR TREATMENT.
OFTEN, THEY HAVE TO WAIT MONTHS.
SOMETIMES A
YEAR OR MORE. IN OUR LOCAL JAILS
BEFORE
GETTING THE HELP THEY NEED.
THOSE PEOPLE AND THEIR FAMILIES.
SAY WAITING THAT
LONG FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT. JUST
MAKES
THINGS WORSE.
HE DOESN'T DESERVE TO BE GOING
THROUGH THIS. MOST
PEOPLE WHO KNOW HIM JUST SAY
HE'S
HE'S JUST
HE'S JUST THE SWEETEST KID. LIKE MOST DADS. MICHAEL RISENMAY THINKS THE
WORLD OF HIS SON. JAKOB
RISENMAY. HAS A FEW MENTAL
DISABILITIES, LIKE LOW IQ AND
AUTISM. BUT HE STILL WRITES
LETTERS TO HIS FAMILY EVERY
COUPLE OF WEEKS.
YOU CAN SEE THEY'RE NOT
ADDRESSED CORRECTLY...
THOSE LETTERS. COME FROM HERE.
NATS
BEXAR COUNTY JAIL IN SAN
ANTONIO. AFTER A FIGHT ON A
BUS. POLICE ARRESTED JAKOB FOR
ASSAULTING A
PUBLIC SERVANT AND INJURING A
DISABLED PERSON. BUT A
JUDGE FOUND HIM MENTALLY
INCOMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL.
THAT MEANS HE NEEDS TREATMENT
FROM A STATE
HOSPITAL. HE'S BEEN WAITING TO
GET THAT HELP FOR MORE
THAN SIX MONTHS. SITTING IN A
JAIL CELL.
THERE HAVE BEEN TIMES WE GO AND
HE'LL HAVE BRUISING
ALL OVER HIS FACE OR HE'S LOST A
TOOTH THAT GOT
KNOCKED OUT IN ONE OF THE
ASSAULTS.
THERE ARE STORIES LIKE THIS
ACROSS TEXAS. MANY.
RIGHT HERE IN TRAVIS COUNTY. THE
REASON PEOPLE HAVE TO
WAIT IN JAIL FOR MENTAL HEALTH
TREATMENT IS BECAUSE THE
STATE DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH
HOSPITAL BEDS FOR THE
NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO NEED THEM.
THE STATE BREAKS UP MENTALLY
INCOMPETENT
INMATES INTO TWO CATEGORIES:
NON-MAXIMUM
SECURITY AND THE MORE DANGEROUS
CASES.
MAXIMUM SECURITY. THERE ARE
SEPARATE WAIT
LISTS BECAUSE THOSE INMATES GO
TO DIFFERENT
HOSPITALS. MAXIMUM SECURITY
INMATES CAN ONLY GO TO ONE OF
TWO HOSPITALS. AND NON-
MAXIMUM SECURITY INMATES HAVE
NINE OPTIONS.
BUT ON BOTH LISTS TOGETHER IN
2019. THERE WERE 732
PEOPLE WAITING IN JAIL FOR
TREATMENT. BY OCTOBER.
THAT WAITLIST REACHED 900
PEOPLE. SITTING IN JAIL
ON
ON YOUR
ON YOUR LOCAL TAXPAYER DOLLARS. IN THE TRAVIS COUNTY JAIL- ALEX PICKLWS USED TO BE ON
THAT LIST. HIS MOM PATRICIA
REMEMBERS THE WAIT.
I THINK EVERYONE WHO IS INVOLVED
WITH THE
MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM KNOWS THAT
IT'S BROKEN. WE
KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO CHANGE IT.
NOW LET'S JUST
COME TO THE TABLE AND LET'S JUST
DO THAT.
WE FOUND OUT NOT ONLY IS THE
WAIT LIST GROWING. SO
ARE THE WAIT TIMES. FROM JANUARY
TO OCTOBER. THE
WAIT WENT UP FOR THE NON-
MAXIMUM SECURITY LIST
FROM 44 DAYS ON AVERAGE. TO 57
DAYS ON AVERAGE. IN
THAT SAME TIME. THE MAXIMUM
SECURITY
WAITLIST WENT FROM 215 DAYS. TO
308 DAYS ON
AVERAGE. ALMOST A YEAR-LONG
WAIT.
NATS
WAIT. NATS INSIDE THE TARRANT COUNTY JAIL
IN FORT WORTH.
LASHUNJA ALLEN SAYS SHE WATCHED
HER SON CARRELLE
HARPER LOSE 40 POUNDS WHILE HE
WAITED ON THAT LIST.
IT WAS HEARTBREAKING . IT WAS
HEARTBREAKING
. AND I CRIED MANY NIGHTS.
EVENTUALLY, LASHUNJA'S SON MADE
IT OFF THE LIST AND INTO A
STATE HOSPITAL. BUT NOT EVERYONE
IS THAT LUCKY.
THIS LAWSUIT AGAINST WILLIAMSON
COUNTY FILED IN
NOVEMBER. HIGHLIGHTS THE
WORST-CASE SCENARIO WITH
WAITING IN JAIL FOR MENTAL
HEALTH TREATMENT. IT
CLAIMS 24-YEAR-OLD DANIEL MCCOY
WAS IN THE
WILLIAMSON COUNTY JAIL. MENTALLY
INCOMPETENT
AND WAITING FOR TRANSFER TO A
STATE HOSPITAL.
ACCORDING TO THE LAWSUIT.
INMATES AND GUARDS
WATCHED HIM FOR MONTHS "EAT HIS
OWN FECES," "BANG
HIS HEAD AGAINST THE CELL WALL,"
AND "DRINK HIS OWN
BODILY FLUIDS." EVENTUALLY, THE
SUIT SAYS JAILERS
FOUND HIM "UNRESPONSIVE" IN HIS
CELL. "COVERED IN
SECRETIONS" AFTER "VIOLENTLY
THROWING UP"
FOR HOURS. IF NOT DAYS.
FINALLY, THEY SENT DANIEL TO
ASCENSION SETON
WILLIAMSON HOSPITAL. BUT HE DIED
FIVE DAYS LATER
FROM BRAIN DAMAGE AND PNEUMONIA
AFTER HE DIDN'T
GET ENOUGH OXYGEN. WILLIAMSON
COUNTY HASN'T
FILED AN ANSWER TO THE LAWSUIT.
AND WOULDN'T
COMMENT FOR THIS REPORT.
THEY'RE SUFFERING. THEY'RE NOT
GETTING THE
PROPER TREATMENT AND IT'S NOT
MAKING IT ANY BETTER,
IT'S MAKING IT WORSE.
NATS
THE TEXAS HEALTH AND HUMAN
SERVICES
COMMISSION RUNS OUR STATE
HOSPITALS. THE AGENCY
WOULDN'T DO AN INTERVIEW WITH US
BECAUSE THEY'RE AT THE
CENTER OF A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT
ABOUT THIS EXACT
ISSUE.
DO YOU THINK THE WAITLIST AS IT
EXISTS IS POTENTIALLY A
THREAT
THREAT TO
THREAT TO PEOPLE'S SAFETY? I THINK THE WAITLIST IS VERY MUCH A THREAT TO THE
HEALTH AND SAFETY OF THE PERSON
AND TO THEIR FAMILY
AND LOVED ONES AND THEIR
CHILDREN. IT AFFECTS
EVERYONE
DIANA CLAITOR IS THE EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR OF
THE TEXAS JAIL PROJECT. A
NONPROFIT GROUP THAT
ADVOCATES FOR JAIL INMATES.
THERE NEEDS TO BE MORE HOSPITALS
AND THERE NEEDS TO BE MORE
FUNDING AND MORE LOCAL
FACILITIES TOO
STATE FUNDING HAS GONE UP FOR
MENTAL HEALTH
HOSPITALS SINCE 2018. AND A
SPOKESPERSON
SAYS 745 MILLION DOLLARS IN
CONSTRUCTION
PROJECTS WILL EVENTUALLY ADD
MORE THAN 350 NEW BEDS
FOR INMATES WHO ARE WAITING. BUT
THAT
THAT WILL
THAT WILL STILL LEAVE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE IN JAIL. WAITING FOR MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT.
INMATES. LIKE JAKOB RISENMAY
IN BEXAR COUNTY JAIL.
"THEY CAN'T HEAL WHEN THEY'RE
SITTING IN JAIL. THEY
CAN'T GET BETTER. THEY CAN'T GET
THE PROPER
MEDICAL ATTENTION. SO IT DOESN'T
DO ANYBODY ANY
GOOD. IT JUST MAKES THINGS
WORSE."
MICHAEL SAID WHILE HIS FAMILY
WAITS FOR THEIR SON
JAKOB TO GET THE MEDICAL HELP HE
NEEDS.
THEY'RE TELLING EVERYONE THEY
KNOW TO WRITE HIM LETTERS.
THE GOAL IS TO KEEP HIM STRONG
ENOUGH TO
MAKE IT TO THE DAY HE'S FINALLY
TRANSFERRED
TO A STATE HOSPITAL.
"YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S BEEN
SEVERAL NIGHTS WHERE I
COULDN'T SLEEP AT ALL JUST
BECAUSE YOU'RE
WORRIED ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING.
AND,
AND, YOU
AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT RIGHT." THE STATE'S HEALTH DEPARTMENT HAS TO PUBLISH
AN UPDATED COUNT OF THE WAIT
LIST EVERY THREE MONTHS.
WE'RE EXPECTING A NEW REPORT ANY
DAY NOW.
AND WE'LL UPDATE YOU AS SOON AS
WE GET THOSE NEW
NUMBERS.
FOR THE KVUE DEFENDERS. BRAD
STREICHER.
KVUE NEWS.
KVUE NEWS. IF THERE'S SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE
THE DEFENDERS TO INVESTIGATE -- LET US KNOW.
CALL THE NUMBER YOU SEE ON YOUR
SCREEN -- OR
EMAIL US AT DEFENDERS-
AT-KVUE-DOT-COM.