Elizabeth McCullough- Man Dies of Dehydration in Prison

Synopsis: On April 24, 2016 Terrill Thomas was found dead in Milwaukee County Jail. The cause of death was dehydration, and the coroner ruled his death a homicide. More than a year later prosecutors are filing an inquest to determine whether criminal charges can be filed against anyone for his death. The dehydration that killed Thomas was due to jail officials shutting off the water in his cell for a week in solitary confinement. The Lieutenant responsible for this order says that she only ordered for the toilet water to be cut off because Thomas was flooding it. She says that other authorities disobeyed her orders by shutting off the water completely. All other officials at the jail claim they didn't know that Thomas went a whole week without water. This is disputed by another inmate who testifies that he heard Thomas ask for water repeatedly, and each time he was denied. The inquest about his death and a civil suit against jail officials are both currently in process.

Analysis: This is one of the worst cases of mistreatment of a prison inmate I have ever heard. Our Constitution protects every citizen, no matter their crime, from cruel and unusual punishment. If depriving someone of water for seven days isn't cruel and unusual then I don't know what is. The people of that jail have not only denied someone their guaranteed constitutional rights, they killed a man. The actions perpetrated by these people who are supposed to protect us are unacceptable and undoubtedly despicable. I can only hope that the people that are responsible for this tragedy get the justice that Terrill Thomas was deprived of.

Synthesis: The death of Terrill Thomas is similar to the death of Sandra Bland, and woman who died mysteriously while in police custody.