Three Milwaukee County Jail employees, including the facility’s commander, were charged with a host of felonies Monday, after an inmate under their care died of dehydration in his cell a week after his water supply was deliberately cut off.
Terrill J. Thomas, a 38-year-old from Milwaukee, was found dead by a correctional officer on Apr. 24, 2016, just over a week after he was arrested for shooting a man and firing into a casino.
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One of the jail’s supervisors, Kashka Meadors, and a correctional officer, James Ramsey-Guy, have been charged with neglect of an inmate, according to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office. The jail’s commander, Nancy Lee Evans, is charged with misconduct and obstructing an officer. All of the charges are felony offenses and each defendant is facing at least several years in prison.
A jury recommended criminal charges for several of the jail staff after an investigation into the death in May, 2017 revealed the true circumstances of Thomas’ death. The investigation found that Meadors ordered Ramsey-Guy to shut off Thomas’ water supply as a punishment for flooding his cell, according to court documents. Thomas, who suffered mental health issues, had been stuffing parts of his mattress and his clothes into the toilet, which caused it to flood.
“He was literally punished for the manifestations of his mental illness,” Erik Heipt, a lawyer representing his estate in a lawsuit against the prison, told the New York Times. “He was not in his right mind. You don’t take someone like that and then punish them by turning off their water.”
The investigation found that when Evans, the commander, reviewed the video of the cell, she deliberately declined to preserve the tapes, knowing the footage would be taped over. She then lied to police investigators about whether there was any documentation showing if the water had been turned off entirely, or just for a brief period, according to prosecutors
The jail was under the purview of Sheriff David J. Clarke during the time of Thomas’ death, which the complaint alleged made him “legally responsible for the confinement, maintenance, and medical care of all persons confined in the Milwaukee County Jail.” Asked why he wasn’t charged, the lead prosecutor on the case told the Times his office had targeted those who were “most culpable” in Thomas’ death.
After a controversial tenure as sheriff, Clarke resigned in August 2017, where he continued to make headlines through his steadfast support of then-presidential candidate Trump.
Milwaukee County Acting Sheriff Richard Schmidt said Milwaukee County would be spending $16.5 million on mental and medical health in correctional facilities in 2018, according to CBS News.
