Trammell’s death was among seven others reported from January through July last year, and in December a man died after being transferred from the jail to the hospital.
Dayton Daily News reporting revealed more inmates died at the Montgomery County jail last year than all of 2021 and 2022 combined, leading to calls for the community to take action.
Our analysis of state data also showed more people died after coming into custody at the Montgomery County jail last year than any other jail in Ohio. The Dayton Daily News investigated what was causing this rash of fatalities, and what county officials are doing about it.
Trammell’s death received renewed attention this week after a USA Today Network investigation highlighted the March 2023 death of 19-year-old Trammell — a disabled man who died after striking his head multiple times during a mental health crisis — in an investigation into jail deaths across Ohio.
Video of the incident shows corrections officers threatening and insulting Trammell as he struggled to control himself and asked for medication.
The Montgomery County Jail Coalition in a press release on Monday said the group feared that “vulnerable people living with disabilities, addiction, or mental health challenges will never be safe in a jail.”
“Isaiah would be alive today had he been treated with dignity and respect in the jail by staff concerned for his health and well-being. Instead of listening to his cries for medication he was laughed at and ignored. We need accountability for what happened to him,” says Yvonne Currington, retired emergency room nurse and Jail Coalition member.
The sheriff’s office called Trammell’s death an “unspeakable tragedy” and said the community needs a medical space for people to go when they’re experiencing a mental health crisis.
“Medical and mental health providers at the jail provided treatment to Trammell from the time he was booked into jail until he was transported to a local hospital,” said the statement from sheriff’s office spokeswoman Christine Bevins. “Although people facing charges for violent crimes shouldn’t be released to society to deal with, our community needs a medical facility with a lockdown unit that can better handle those who are in crisis.”
The sheriff’s office provided the Dayton Daily News with an April 2023 email from State Jail Inspector Steve Holland to Matt Haines, who was Montgomery County jail commander at the time and was since promoted to chief deputy of the sheriff’s office.
“Thank you for providing the requested information to the Bureau of Adult Detention regarding the Critical Incident (Death/ Trammel) that occurred in your custody,” the email says. “We have reviewed the information you provided in accordance with the Standards for Jails in Ohio. From this review and circumstances related to the incident, it does not appear to identify any deficiencies with the Standards for Jails in Ohio.”
The Dayton Daily News requested the full report from the state using Ohio public records laws and has not yet received it.
“The allegations by the coalition of misconduct by jail staff and a lack of transparency is disheartening considering that the sheriff and jail staff have met with coalition members on multiple occasions, escorted them through every section of the jail so that they could better understand the challenges that our correctional staff faces in our current facility, and they are well aware that the Montgomery County Jail is one of few in the nation that invites professionals from other agencies to review our operations in order to maintain accreditations by both the American Correctional Association and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care,” Bevins wrote in her statement.
The Montgomery County Jail Coalition consists of community members who are concerned about the treatment of inmates at the county jail, seeking solutions for alternatives to incarceration.
“An investigation into these deaths is the first step in identifying the ways we can ensure that future detainees will be given proper care and hopefully we can open up a larger dialogue about who should be taken to jail in the first place,” says Bobby Beebe, an organizer with the Dayton Anti-Racist Network, Montgomery County Jail Coalition, and the Dayton Community Bail Fund.
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