Texas Inmate Suicides Reach Record Level
Texas state prisons reported 50 inmate deaths by suicide in 2020, and the number is expected to increase this year. Authorities say understaffing contrbutes to the problem,, with roughly 5,700 positions currently open and no one available to intervene with inmates suffering stress from the pandemic and solitary confinement.
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Texas state prisons reported 50 inmate deaths in 2020. That was up from 36 in 2019, and around 40 in 2018. So far in 2021, the numbers are on track to exceed 50, reports KUT. The cause of such deaths is tied to understaffing, with roughly 5,700 positions currently open and no one available to intervene, fallout from the pandemic resulting in dire inmate living conditions, the use of solitary confinement, which has gone up 500 percent, and the fact that Texas prisons aren’t air conditioned. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has stated that it’s aware of the issue and have assigned senior-level task forces to try to address it.
