OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Oklahoma lawmakers are calling upon federal authorities to intervene on the Oklahoma County Detention Middle and deal with the “horrendous situations” on the jail.
Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus members despatched a letter to U.S. Legal professional Basic Merrick Garland, pleading with him to answer alarming situations on the Detention Middle.
“Inmates are topic to mould, mattress bugs, and an absence of entry to medical care and primary well being and hygiene wants,” the letter states.
The lawmakers described the jail situations as civil rights violations that require the lawyer basic’s consideration.
The letter famous that 10 inmates have died within the jail for the reason that Oklahoma County’s Jail Belief took over the Detention Middle this previous July; six of these 10 deaths occurred in 2023.
The Black Caucus members additionally talked about the lethal hostage scenario that occurred on March 27 on the Detention Middle, throughout which a detention officer was stabbed and held at knifepoint and an inmate killed.
Inmates seized the detention officer’s sensible telephone throughout the hostage disaster and used it to livestream a video from contained in the jail. Through the video, the inmates stated their actions had been in response to squalid situations on the jail.
One inmate who appeared within the video stated they had been doing what needed to be carried out as a result of they haven’t any meals and can’t take showers on the jail. One other inmate is then seen standing over the crouched detention officer together with his hand on the again of the officer’s neck, berating him.
The inmate holding the telephone can then be heard saying that the water within the jail doesn’t work and the bathrooms are backed up.
Moms of jail inmates spoke with KFOR within the wake of the hostage disaster, one claiming her son was not allowed to bathe for 19 days, and one other claiming her son obtained insufficient medical care on the jail.
A representatives for the jail’s in-house medical care supplier, Flip Key Well being, despatched a letter to jail directors days after the hostage disaster. The consultant cited unsafe situations for Flip Key workers and threatened to cancel the corporate’s contract with the jail if staffing was not elevated by the top of the month.
Flip Key representatives later famous a safety presence enchancment throughout every day operations on the jail and opted to not cancel the corporate’s contract with the jail.
Flip Key representatives stated there’s nonetheless a necessity for extra workers on the Detention Middle, however that they sit up for persevering with a protracted partnership with the jail.
Jail directors just lately stated the jail’s water strain points had been repaired. Water strain was shut off from 3:30 a.m. to midday on April 8 to permit for repairs.
Mac Mullings with the jail stated the long-planned repairs had been wanted to repair detention heart flooding points and deal with among the considerations cited within the Oklahoma Division of Well being report that was launched following the hostage disaster.
The complete letter to Garland from the Black Caucus is as follows:
Letter to Merrick Garland by KFOR on Scribd
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