Latest Tarrant County jail death sparks protests, discussions

FORT WORTH, Texas - Tarrant County Commissioners met to discuss another inmate's death at the jail.

Protestors were also planning to be at the county courthouse on Tuesday morning with signs and a message for the commissioners about the in-custody death of Mason Yancy and dozens of others.

Who Was Mason Yancy?

What we know:

Yancy died on Dec. 27, four days after Grapevine police arrested him on drug charges.

The Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office said Yancy disclosed a long history of medical issues when he was booked into the jail. Then he died after a medical emergency, despite life-saving efforts.

The Libertarian Party of Texas shared the 31-year-old’s picture on Facebook while calling for justice for those who’ve died in the Tarrant County jail.

What we don't know:

Yancy’s cause of death is still unknown. His autopsy results are still pending.

Tarrant County Jail Deaths

The backstory:

The jail has come under scrutiny for the nearly 70 in-custody deaths since Sheriff Bill Waybourn took office in 2017.

Yancy was the second inmate to die there in December.

On Dec. 2, a 51-year-old man died after telling jail staff he was not feeling well. He was examined at the jail and taken to John Peter Smith Hospital, where he died.

This past June, inmate Anthony Ray Johnson Jr. died following a struggle with jailers that was captured on video.

The video shows one of the officers kneeling on Johnson's back after he was already in restraints and pepper sprayed. The supervising officer took cellphone video of the incident.

"I can't breathe," Johnson can be heard saying in the video.

An autopsy report found that Johnson died from asphyxia, both mechanical and chemical. 

The Tarrant County Sheriff's Office said the finding of chemical asphyxiation can be attributed to the use of pepper spray, along with the presence of methamphetamine as a contributing factor. The restraints and knee on his back could have contributed to the mechanical asphyxiation.

Two jailers involved were fired as a result of the ongoing investigation.

They were charged with murder after Johnson’s death was ruled a homicide.

Shannon Herklotz hired to oversee Tarrant County jail

Tarrant County has hired a new chief to oversee the jail system.

Shannon Herklotz previously worked for the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office as the chief deputy and as the chief jailer at the Harris County jail in Houston.

He also served as the deputy director of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards in Austin.

"Shannon brings more than three decades of detention experience to TCSO and we are lucky to have him," the sheriff said in a statement after Herklotz was hired.

Herklotz replaces former chief deputy Charles Eckert.

Eckert retired in May after a string of inmate deaths, including the one that led to a criminal investigation and the arrest of two jailers.

Waybourn Addresses County Commissioners

What they're saying:

Sheriff Waybourn has asked the public for patience as the jail’s in-custody deaths are being investigated.

He also pointed to a report by an agency of the Department of Justice praising the Tarrant County jail, its employees, and the jail’s leadership.

Regarding Yancy's death, Waybourn told commissioners that his staff followed proper safety protocols.

He said Yancy collapsed in his cell while being evaluated by nurses who gave him immediate medical attention.

"It's very unfortunate that he passed, but when he did he got the very best health care we could deliver at the moment," the sheriff said.

"We can't ignore almost 70 deaths. And we owe it to taxpayers to bring transparency," said Commissioner Alisa Simmons. 

She called for changes in the jail booking process to provide more medical intervention.

Tarrant CountyCrime and Public Safety