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• Ashlee Edwards
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• This story includes descriptions of violence and self harm that may trigger some people. If you’re on the fence about reading it, check out this summary of the story, which does not contain any graphic details.

  About half of the people in county jails in Pennsylvania have some diagnosed mental health issue. About 15% of people in jail have a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia that warrants the highest level of behavioral health care.

  A WITF investigation found that almost one in three uses of force from 25 jails during the last three months of 2021 involved a person who was having a mental health crisis or who had a diagnosed mental illness.

  The situation brings risks ranging from lasting psychological trauma to death.

  The option to use physical force is essential for corrections officers to prevent violence against others. However, records obtained by WITF show that a significant number of uses of force are against people who are not hurting anyone else.

  In these records, just one in 10 uses of force are in response to a prisoner assaulting someone else. Another 10% describe a prisoner threatening staff.

  WITF found that one in five of uses of force — 88 incidents — involve a prisoner who was either attempting suicide, hurting themselves or threatening self-harm. Common responses by prison staff included a restraint chair and pepper spray. In some cases, officers used electroshock devices such as stun guns.

  Records also show 42 cases where corrections staff noted someone appeared to have a mental health condition but still used force when the person failed to respond to commands.

  When someone in jail is injured or dies, it’s usually the corrections officers and wardens who are targeted in lawsuits. However, the broader culpability extends from jails to state governments that set policies and fail to fund the mental health services that could keep people out of jail.

  The state Department of Corrections has limited authority over county correctional institutions. It inspects jails every year or two years as required by state law. In addition, some county jails send their new hires to the state’s corrections training academy.

  Supporters of these techniques say they save lives, but some jails in the U.S. have moved away from the practices, saying they’re inhumane and don’t work.

  Cook County, Illinois has done away with prison wardens and has put psychologists and other mental health professionals in charge of the jail. Some inmates are permitted to stay in a “college campus” setting where they have access to classes and job training. The jail doesn’t use restrictive housing and has significantly limited uses of pepper spray and other painful control measures.

  To change the circumstances for people in county jails, experts say county and state leaders need to reimagine them as a place where mental health care is prioritized.

Key Terms

• Anti-suicide smock: A garment designed so that it can’t easily be used for suicide. Corrections officers also call this a “suicide smock,” “suicide gown” and “safety smock” in their reports.

  Electroshock device: A general term for stun guns, electrified gloves and other implements used to deliver an electric shock to a person.

  Pepper spray: An informal term for any device that delivers a chemical spray of oleoresin capsicum, also called “O.C.,” or similar chemicals. Oleoresin capsicum causes a painful burning sensation and temporary blindness, and can cause other distressing symptoms including coughing and difficulty breathing.

  Restraint chair: A device that prevents a person from moving their arms or legs.

  Restrictive/segregated housing: Any type of housing where a prisoner is kept alone in a cell for all but one or two hours per day. Research links restrictive housing to long-lasting psychological damage.

  Suicide watch: A general term for a status for people held in county jail. There are several categories of suicide watch. New inmates are often put on suicide watch. Prisoners who have talked about or attempted to hurt themselves are also put on suicide watch. Corrections officers often take away the clothes and possessions of a person who is placed on suicide watch.