The county supervisors showed little appetite for the grim minutia unearthed by three blistering reports on jailhouse deaths that last year’s grand jury concluded could or should have been prevented. It’s little wonder. The family of one of the victims, a Santa Ynez woman with a history of suicidal thoughts who hung herself with a 12-inch telephone cord in an observation room within eyeshot of the jail intake desk, has put the county on notice it intends to sue for multiple millions of dollars.
The other two decedents were an alcoholic going through withdrawal who fell and fatally hit his head and a female opioid addict who screamed in agony for two days before dying; jail medical personnel mistakenly believed her gut-busting pain was a function of her addiction.
The supervisors were informed that most of the detailed recommendations offered by the grand jury had either been implemented or soon would be. They heard how the jail’s private medical care provider, Wellpath, had hired 22 additional medical personnel at a cost to the county of $7 million, how more rigorous oversight has been implemented, how more cases are subjected to medical audit, and how Wellpath will be financially penalized if they don’t follow protocol. The County Public Health Department will be providing greater oversight, as will the Behavioral Wellness Department…