Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog

A small, inconspicuous article caught my eye in the Geneva Finger Lakes times today. It was titled, "Teen Inmate Found Hanging in Jail Cell" and described how a 17-year old at the Yates County Jail in Penn Yan had apparently hung himself Friday evening by tying his bed sheet to his jail bars.

New York prison suicide lawyers know that suicides like this are usually preventable.

The kid was only 17-years old! Think of his poor family! Unlike prisons, which house convicted criminals, county jails hold many pre-trial detainees who may have committed no crime at all. The ones who are jailed there post-trial are usually guilty of lesser crimes. This young prisoner may have been just a bone-headed kid who temporarily ended up on the wrong-side of the law, and who would have eventually become a good, upstanding citizen.

Here are some facts that might surprise most my readers: (1) the family of a jailhouse suicide victim has a potential New York wrongful death claim against the jail authorities for having failed to prevent the suicide and (2) prison suicide is not at all uncommon, especially in small jails.

As for number (1), New York prison authorities have a legal duty to prevent a prison suicide when they know or should know that a prisoner is prone to suicide. The prison guards must use reasonable care to assure that such a prisoner does not harm himself. Therefore, proper and thorough screening of a newly admitted inmate is essential in determining suicide risk, and if there is a risk, proper monitoring and supervision is required.

Unfortunately, smaller jails, unlike maximum security mega-prisons (e.g., Auburn, Attica), often suffer from inadequate and undertrained staff who don't properly screen inmates for suicide risk, and later fail to monitor and supervise them to prevent suicide. Further, small county jails often lack proper anti-suicide equipment such as tear-proof blankets and sheets that can't be turned in suicide ropes (as this 17-year-old inmate did with his sheets).

Most rural counties, such as Yates, are struggling to just meet the basic federally mandated requirements for jails. They cut corners on needed anti-suicide training, staffing and equipment. But these cost-cutting measures wind up costing lives in smaller jails, where, according to Bureau of Justice statistics, 2/5 of all deaths are from suicides.

Some jails are worse than others. For example, the Erie County jail is under investigation by the Department of Justice for having 5 times the national average in suicides.

The highest suicide rate is with newly admitted inmates. Some may be depressed following the events that led to their arrest, or from the mere trauma of being arrested and jailed for the first time. About a quarter of suicides happen within 48 hours of admission, and half occur within the first week. That's why initial suicide-risk screening is so important.

People charged with crimes need to be temporarily incarcerated until bail is established. People who are convicted of crimes need to pay the price. But jailhouse suicides are preventable, And suicide is not part of our criminal justice system. This is especially true when the jailed person has not even been convicted of a crime.

In this New York personal injury lawyer's humble opinion, the family of a jailhouse suicide victim should always check with a New York jail suicide lawyer to investigate whether a claim can and should be brought against the jail or prison authorities.

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Eighteen years is a long time, especially if you spend them in jail for a crime you did not commit. Just ask Frank Sterling of Rochester, New York. Local news sources report that DNA evidence recently cleared Mr. Sterling of murder. He had spent 18 long, hard, bitter years in jail for killing an elderly neighbor as she out for a walk on an old train track trail in Rochester. Only problem is he didn't. Someone else did. But Mr. Sterling finally walked away a free man this past Wednesday.

How did he get convicted? Under heavy interrogation, Sterling made a mistake that too many innocent men make --- he confessed. Why? To end the interrogation. He told his interrogators what they wanted to hear so they would stop. Sounds silly to people who have never been under that kind of grueling pressure for hour upon hour. But it makes sense to the accused at the time. Lengthy, tough interrogations do something to the human psyche. Sometimes people crack. Mr. Sterling cracked. Even though Mr. Sterling almost immediately disavowed his "confession", it turned out to be the nail in his coffin at trial.

And the REAL murderer? Turns out he got away with it, but then killed a four-year-old girl six years later, and that time he got caught. He eventually confessed to both killings.

Does this poor Mr. Sterling have a legal remedy in New York to get compensation for all that time he served in jail on a false conviction? Yes. It is called Court of Claims Act section 8-b. This little gem of legislation proves that New York State has a soul. It became law because our legislatures thought the State had a "moral obligation" to compensate innocent people convicted and imprisoned. Under this Statute, Mr. Sterling may file a claim against the State of New York to compensate him for his 17 years of hell. All he has to prove is that he was innocent, and that "he did not by his own conduct bring about the conviction". We hope Mr. Sterling finds a competent New York wrongful conviction attorney to steer him through the process.

Our hats go off to the Innocent Project for undoing another wrongful conviction with DNA evidence. And our hearts, and best wishes, go out to Mr. Sterling, who is as deserving of compensation as anyone can be.