FBI launches civil rights investigations into 2 inmate deaths at Houston jail

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced Monday that it has opened civil rights investigations into two inmate deaths at the Harris County Jail in Houston, Texas. 

The FBI said it will review the February 2021 death of Jaquaree Simmons, and the January death of Jacoby Pillow. 

“These investigations will be fair, thorough, and impartial, and will proceed independently of any state investigations involving incidents at the jail,” the FBI said in a statement Monday.

The announcement came shortly after civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing several families of those who died in the Harris County Jail — along with Dallas-based attorney Paul Grinke — held a press conference on Monday in Houston. Crump called for more transparency around custodial deaths, while families spoke about the frustrations they have experienced since the death of their loved ones.

“I’ve literally witnessed correctional staff mistreat detainees because they were in need of insulin for diabetes or other medical issues,” said Ariana Pillow, a former Harris County employee, at the press conference.

Harris County has seen an uptick in jail deaths over the last two years. So far this year, there have been four such deaths, Angelique Myers, spokesperson for Harris County Sheriff’s Office, told CBS News Wednesday. In 2022, there were 27 jail deaths, and in 2021, there were 21 deaths, Myers said.

Families seeking information about loved ones who have died in Texas custody can access reports, said Andrea Armstrong, a law professor at Loyola University, and director of IncarcerationTransparency.org, which memorializes fatalities behind bars.  

Texas is one of the few states that have a mandatory reporting law for in-custody deaths. Any time a death occurs in custody — jail or prison —law enforcement is required to file a report within 30 days to the state attorney general, which keeps custody death incident reports, Armstrong said.  Due to this legislation, Texas is one of the few places where families who have lost loved ones while they are in jails or prisons have access to information, said Armstrong. 

Others are not so lucky, and in jails, the issue is particularly acute. There are 3,300 jails across the U.S., and most are locally operated and only accountable to their jurisdiction. They are often run by an elected sheriff who may or may not have correctional experience, said Armstrong. 

This can lead to a lack of transparency around deaths within prisons or jails, she said. In 2021, the federal government released statistics showing 1,200 people died in jails in 2019, a 5% increase from the previous year. However, officials agree these numbers are likely undercounted. A bipartisan Senate report documented an undercount of nearly 1,000 in-custody deaths in 2021. 

“We have no idea how many deaths are happening in custody across America, we do have some data from some states or cities but given the sheer amount of jails across the country, we know very little,” said Armstrong.

Simmons, 23, of Houston, was arrested and booked into the Harris County Jail on Feb. 10, 2021, police said. He was discovered by a corrections officer lying face down in his cell, and attempts to revive him were unsuccessful, a death incident report said. Simmons was pronounced dead at Lydon B. Johnson Hospital in Houston, the death incident report said. 

On Feb. 1 of this year, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office charged 28-year-old corrections officer Eric Niles Morales with felony manslaughter in Simmons’ death, court documents said. Morales allegedly dropped Simmons on his head, kneed him, and struck his head against his cell and the wall recklessly causing his death, court documents said.

An internal investigation into Simmons’ death uncovered multiple policy violations by staff which resulted in the decision by the sheriff’s office to fire 11 employees and suspend six others in May 2021, according to the sheriff’s office. 

Pillow, 31, died Jan. 3 in the Harris County Jail after staff “used force to restrain” him after he was accused of assaulting a detention officer while being released on bond, the sheriff’s office news release said. After medical staff evaluated him, Pillow was returned to his cell, where he was later found unresponsive, then taken to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead, the sheriff’s statement said.

Pillow’s cause of his death is still pending, the sheriff’s office said.

“I look forward to learning the FBI’s findings because we must all know the full truth if we are to improve our operation and make the jail as safe as possible for everyone entrusted into our care,” said Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez in a press statement.