Following the death of four inmates in ten months, a San Luis Obispo County Grand Jury said further review is needed of the quote “adequacy and appropriateness of the management structure at the County Jail.”
One of the inmates who died in custody was 36-year-old Andrew Holland. In January, Holland suffered from a pulmonary embolism while strapped to a restraint chair for a total of 46 hours. He was awaiting a transfer to a mental health facility.
The Grand Jury’s report on the county’s prisons and jails raised concerns specifically about how the jail operates medical and mental health care, and the use of a restraint chair.
The jury said information about inmate health and safety was “challenging to obtain” from the county, and in some cases not available at all.
The review also found there was inadequate space to conduct programming for male inmates, and there was no single official at the county jail level that had “true oversight and responsibility over all aspects of an inmate’s well-being.”
The County Sheriff and Health Agency is expected to conduct a joint review and issue a public report by December 31, 2017.
