Bipolar inmate dies at Milwaukee County Jail after correctional officers deprived him of water.
Recently, several staff members of the Milwaukee County Jail, prison director included, have come under fire after a convict died due to severe dehydration. According to the authorities, as a part of a wicked disciplinary method moved the convict in solitary confinement and turned off the water. The coroner stated that the convict’s death is a homicide.
On the 24th of April 2016, Terrill Thomas, a Milwaukee County Jail inmate was found dead in his cell. According to the coroner’s report, the man died as a result of severe dehydration. Following Thomas’s death, an internal investigation was started in order to uncover why the inmate did not receive any water.
According to Assistant Attorney Kurt Benkley, Thomas was diagnosed with a severe case of bipolar disorder. Due to his condition, the inmate was being kept under constant observation in the prison’s psychiatric ward.
However, several days before his death, Thomas was moved from the psychiatric ward to solitary confinement. Some of the correctional officers who handled the inmate and were called upon to testify before the court admitted that Thomas was known to act up from time to time and that they’ve decided to teach him a little lesson.
As a result, the inmate was moved to solitary confinement in order to ‘cool down.’ However, it appears that this was more than an attempt to discipline a rowdy convict. According to their statements, as soon as Thomas was placed in solitary confinement, a couple of correctional officers turned off the water in his cell.
Furthermore, in their defense, they’ve declared that the inmate never asked for a drop of water nor complained about not having water in his cell. However, due to his condition, Thomas was not capable of requesting water.
The investigation revealed that, on more than one occasion, correctional officers were approached by other inmates who told them that Thomas is quite thirsty and that he’s not looking so good. Unfortunately, the correctional officers ignored their warnings.
And so, on the 24th of April 2016, Terrill Thomas was found unconscious on the cell’s floor. The staff’s attempts to resuscitate him were useless. Thomas’s death was the starting point of a criminal investigation, involving several correctional officers and the Milwaukee County Jail’s director.
New information reveals that some of the correctional officers were not aware that the water in Thomas’s cell had been turned off.
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