The cause of a Texas inmate’s de@th inside an East Texas jail this week during a state-wide lockdown is being investigated by investigators.
Billy Chemirmir, who was charged with ki!!ing 22 elderly ladies and one man in North Texas, were discovered de@d in his cell on Tuesday, according to investigators who believe his cellmate ki!!ed him, according to Hannah Haney, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The Dallas Morning News broke the news of the event late on Wednesday.
Chermirmir was a prisoner at the 3,818-bed Coffield Unit in Tennessee Colony, an unincorporated area east of Palestine, where another violent incident between a prisoner and guard took place the day before the Texas Department of Criminal Justice announced a lockdown of the state’s 100 prisons.
A correctional guard in a high-security facility was stabbed by a prisoner at the Coffield facility on September 5. Amanda Hernandez, a spokeswoman for the prison system, TDCJ personnel used excessive force in their response to this event and failed to follow established procedures.
Seven correctional officers were fired and another six officers resigned following an internal investigation into that incident.
“The inmate is recovering at the hospital,” she said. “This incident was forwarded to the Office of Inspector General for criminal investigation.”
The name of the prisoner who was hospitalized after being assaulted by guards was kept a secret by TDCJ.
According to reports from the agencies, Uriel Neri, 29, was ki!!ed by fellow prisoners at the Mark W. Stiles Unit on September 5 in Beaumont, which is located 200 miles distant. This issue is currently being looked into.
Sept. 6, the very next day, TDCJ declared a lockdown of all 100 prisons across the system. The organization disputes that the violent episodes were what prompted the lockdown, which was intended to limit the movement of the 129,000 prisoners in their supervision and enable a number of thorough drug searches.
Hernandez stated that one of the main reasons the lockdown was implemented was due to the 16 inmate homicides that have occurred this year.
“The increase in homicides resulted in implementing it at this time,” Hernandez said. “Last year, we had seven, and the year prior, we had nine.”
The agency has searched 50 state jails for contraband since the lockdown started. The following prohibited goods have so far been found by prison officials: 34.5 liters of alcohol, 274 guns, 196 cell phones, varied quantities of cocaine, amphetamine, fentanyl, PCP, and synthetic marijuana.
The TDCJ Office of Inspector General has started more than 500 criminal investigations into alleged illegal behavior involving inmates, employees, and visitors to prisons as a result, Hernandez claimed. In 50 of the state’s jails, ordinary business has resumed, including visits.
Prison advocates wonder if the lockdown is doing more harm than good because reports of unhygienic food, no showers, and debilitating isolation are beginning to emerge from the prison system. Increased than two-thirds of Texas’ jails lack air conditioning, thus limiting convicts’ freedom to roam around and take showers while the outside temperature was still above 100 degrees, which may lead to increased discontent within.
If you want to see other recent news, you can click on the link given below:
- 2 Men Face Murder Charges For Killing Case of 1975 Says Indiana State Police
- Chicago: 2 Men Accused After Street Racing Crash Kills Lady
Discrepancy in Homicide Reports
Ice water is provided to the prisoners throughout the day, and water is also accessible in their cells via sinks. The University of Texas at Austin’s jail and Jail Innovation Lab director, Michele Deitch, praised the agency’s efforts to try and control the violence in their jail system but thought a nationwide lockdown was an extreme measure.
“This is taking a hammer to a situation that probably needs more of a scalpel,” she claimed. “It’s a very heavy-handed approach that is going to cause a bunch of other problems that they’re going to need to address.”
The Deitch, an inmate, is unable to contact friends or relatives during a prison lockdown. She claimed that long after the lockdown is removed, the prison system’s mental strain as a result of this will still be felt.
“It creates a lot of tension when you are stuck with one other person in what is pretty much a bathroom, and you aren’t able to get out of your cell to move around or participate in recreation,” she admitted. “So there’s a lot of tension, which also translates into more violence with one’s cellmates, dorm mates, and even tension between staff and the people incarcerated.”
Despite claims by state prison officials that 16 inmate homicides have taken place this year, internet custodial mortality data show only 11 homicides. Hernandez said that this is the case since the agency’s online records were posted before TDCJ officials got the final toxicology and autopsy findings from neighborhood hospitals and medical facilities.
TDCJ custodial de@th reports 20 detainees have passed away since the lockdown started. 13 of the occurrences were classified as having “natural” de@ths, while three suicides and four cases are still open owing to incomplete autopsies. The m*rder of Chemirmir is not included in this number because the custodial de@th report was not published as of Thursday morning.
This past week, The Texas Tribune received inquiries from relatives and friends of prisoners who were distressed about the heat inside the facilities, the scarcity of cold water, and the meager supply of food.
“This will be the second long-time lockdown for Hughes Unit within the last six months,” stated a mom of one of the convicts who requested anonymity out of concern for her son’s safety. “My son lost 15 pounds and began to develop claustrophobia from being in the small space and with the heat being 106 degrees for so long. Now, it’s happening again.”
Additionally, Texas inmates are posting TikTok videos of the inedible food that was provided to them during the lockdown and labeling it as such.
The prison agency’s spokesperson, Hernandez, refuted claims that the food in their facilities was of low quality and claimed that videos or photographs that had been making the rounds online didn’t accurately depict the meals served to their inmate population.
“TDCJ has staff across the state monitoring the quality and quantity of food. During the lockdown, meals are provided three times a day, with one of the meals being a hot meal,” she said. “Additionally, TDCJ is adding items from the commissary to the sack meals twice a week.”
If you want to read more news, visit our website, theeastcountygazette.com, to find all the most recent information. You can also leave your thoughts in the comment box, and don’t forget to add this website to your list of bookmarks.
