The death of hope: Suicides in jail are a reproach to humanity
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No one expects a stint in jail or prison to be pleasant. The fact that these places are designed to challenge a person's humanity is supposed to add to their deterrence value. That's the theory.
The reality is that jails and prisons are much worse than civilians can imagine.
The despair that people feel on both sides of the cell door is real. Inmates confined behind bars for much of the day are going to consider their options in life limited. So, is it any wonder that a despairing minority will resort to drastic measures that include taking their own lives?
Allegheny County Jail has been the scene of three suicides by inmates in the last two months. David Gratter of Lawrenceville, Jason Kindler of Sharpsburg and John A. Simeone III of Highland Park hung themselves using shoelaces as nooses.
Because these deaths have come after two years of no suicides at all, Warden Ramon Rustin is justifiably concerned.
In response to the cluster of jail deaths, Mr. Rustin has taken steps to model the suicide prevention program at ACJ after the one at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility. The warden wants to train inmates as another set of eyes to monitor potentially suicidal prisoners.
This is a step in the right direction, but it addresses the symptoms of the problem without getting at the core of it.
The mental health of inmates takes a back seat to society's shortsighted interest in seeing them dominated and punished. To show compassion is to risk being seen as coddling criminals. Consequently, jails have become warehouses for people broken in body as well as spirit. Very little, if any, rehabilitation takes place in these places.
It doesn't take much to generate suicidal despair if there is a way to carry it out. The surprising thing is that there aren't more suicides in jail.
First Published April 13, 2008 12:00 am
