By C1 Staff
NEW CASTLE, Del. — The family of an inmate who committed suicide at a Delaware correctional facility nearly two years ago is suing to get answers about his death.
Delaware Online reports that Ian Arias, who had a history of suicide attempts as a teenager, hung himself with a bed sheet on March 5, 2013, at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center while awaiting trial.
Arias was one of 32 inmates in the state to commit suicide since 2000. His family said he had a history of major depressive disorder that was first identified when he was a teenager.
His brother and mother filed a federal lawsuit seeking information about how Arias was cared for shortly before his death. They are hoping to understand the policies and rules surrounding the care of suicidal inmates.
“This is somebody that screamed ‘I’m going to commit suicide’ at every turn,” said Andre Beauregard, the attorney representing the family. “This is somebody that attempts to commit suicide twice while in the Department of Corrections; then gets sent over to the psychiatric center and is still expressing suicidal thoughts and then is released back to prison. Twenty days later he is dead.”
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in prisons and jails nationwide, and the National Study of Jail Suicide found that the rate of suicides in prisons is several times higher than that of the general population.
Arias attempted to commit suicide twice while awaiting trial on charges of rape and sexual abuse of a child; he told staff about his desire to kill himself, according to the suit. In November, he was transferred to the Delaware Psychiatric Center by a court order and was placed on one-on-one monitoring.
He was medicated and switched back and forth between one-on-one monitoring over the next few months, depending on his suicidal thoughts at the time.
Despite protests and indications that Arias was still suicidal and experience psychomotor retardation, a doctor discharged him from the psychiatric center. He then returned to the prison, where he stayed in the infirmary.
His mother says he may have felt isolated, since his family was not allowed to see him in the infirmary.
Shortly after being released from the infirmary, Arias committed suicide.
His family’s suit alleges that he was not being regularly monitored on March 5 to prevent his death. It also states the staff were not properly trained.
In response to the Arias’ federal suit, the DOC said it adheres to a 26-page policy in place to prevent suicides. The policy requires all staff to undergo an eight-hour initial suicide prevention training when they first start and are required to take a two-hour refresher course each year.
Inmates are screened when they first arrive at the prison to see if they are at risk of suicide or self-injury.
Those who are flagged as high risk are “closely monitored and are treated in the state’s prison facilities,” said Jason Miller, DOC spokesman.
The policy also outlines how often inmates should be checked on. The DOC would not release details regarding Arias’ care.