Inmate suicide note from Harris County jail points to systemic gaps in mental health care

"Still, the jail is ill-prepared to be the state’s largest mental health care provider. A quarter of county inmates are on psychiatric medication, according to Harris County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Jason Spencer. There have been 15 suicides at the county lock-up since 2009, and staff intervene in an average of about 10 suicide attempts per month, according to jail data."

Houston Chronicle

August 17, 2018