Sheriff: no deaths in Carson City jail this year

There have been no deaths in the Carson City Jail in the first five months of 2023, according to the Carson City Sheriff’s Office.

State law requires data on jail conditions and any deaths be presented to the Board of Supervisors twice a year. According to data released for the July 6 supervisors meeting, the Carson City jail had 1,154 total bookings year-to-date through the end of May. That compares to 1,216 in the same period last year. Releases for 2023 so far are 981 versus 1,119 last year.

The average daily population in the jail for 2023 so far is 120 male inmates and 48 female inmates. That compares to a daily average of 133 males and 43 females in the same period last year.

Data for inmate incidents show three attempted suicides in 2023 versus one last year. The three attempts are still lower than the four recorded for the same time in 2021. Additionally, there was one battery on an officer this year compared to zero the previous two years.

Inmate-versus-inmate incidents are down from six last year to four this year. Use of force incidents are up — eight year-to-date versus zero last year and four in 2021. Inmate grievances remained at zero from 2022 to 2023.

Searches conducted in the jail went up 63 percent, from 620 in the same time period last year to 1,008 searches conducted so far this year.

“The jail acquired a body scanner for all intakes,” CCSO Detention Commander Capt. Earl Mays III said in an email. “Any time there is an anomaly on the body scan, we do the more thorough search.”

“Within the jail booking area, the newest addition of full-body electronic scans has helped the facility to detect and prevent the smuggling of illegal substances into the jail,” added Sheriff Ken Furlong. “All inmates who are booked into the jail are scanned to detect anomalies contained within the inmate’s body. Since its purchase this past year, deputies have made numerous detections for controlled substances and other devices that may have gone undetected in the past.”

The data shows medical emergencies in the jail are down. Year-to-date, there have been 19 medical emergencies versus 26 in the same period in 2022 and 24 in 2021.

Furlong emphasized the “health, safety and welfare of inmates takes on the highest priority in the sheriff’s office.”

“Thankfully, internal programs, training of deputies and overlapping agency support is quick to ensure that inmates suffering from conditions receive the best possible care, even if the care requires admittance into the hospital,” Furlong said.

He said overall, the welfare programs of the jail have been successful this reporting period.

“Looking toward the future, among those high-interest areas continues to be inmates who may be detoxing when they are brought into the jail,” he said. “In this area, our medical personnel and facilities are constantly on alert to detect threatening conditions that go along with detoxing.”

Furlong further said this year’s budget —approved by the Board of Supervisors — has allowed for a monitoring device for at-risk inmates.

“This device will alert staff and medical personnel to respond immediately for urgent care,” he said. “All of these efforts are being used to prevent deaths and serious injury to inmates while in our care.”

The full jail report can be viewed online: https://legistarweb-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/attachment/pdf/2035089/2023_Detention.pdf