According to a report last week in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the death of Terrill Thomas while he was confined in the Milwaukee County Jail has been ruled a homicide after the cause of Thomas’ death was “profound dehydration.” According to accounts from other inmates, the water in Thomas’ cell had been shut off for six days .
The death of an inmate in the Milwaukee County Jail has been ruled a homicide, four months after corrections officers reportedly cut off his water supply for an extended period of time.
The cause of death was dehydration, with other significant conditions including bipolar disorder, according to autopsy results released Thursday by the Milwaukee County medical examiner’s office.
Terrill Thomas, 38, was found unresponsive in his cell on April 24, nine days after being arrested for shooting a man in the chest and later firing two shots in the Potawatomi casino.
His family said he was in the throes of a mental breakdown when he was arrested. At the time of his death, he was awaiting a court-ordered psychiatric examination.
In July, the Journal Sentinel reported that inmates in cells near Thomas heard him beg for water days before his death and saw the water faucet in his cell had been shut off.
As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article notes, Terrill Thomas death at the hands of David Clarke’s jail staff isn’t an isolated incident – during a four-year period 10 people died in custody of David Clarke’s Sheriff’s Office.
Let’s be honest: Wisconsin conservatives are completely OK with deaths like this. Sheriff Clarke and his staff will face zero consequences for depriving an inmate of water.
Just preparing us for a future when none of us in WI will have access to clean water.