A woman identified as Dametria McDile died Saturday while in custody of the St. Louis City Justice Center, marking at least 22 deaths since 2020.
Officials from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said McDile, 32, experienced a medical emergency at the jail before she was taken to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Police say their Force Investigation Unit is probing the incident, which is standard protocol for in-custody deaths.
In a statement, leaders from the St. Louis Corrections Division said they recognize the profound seriousness of any in-custody death and offered their deepest sympathies to the individual’s family and loved ones.
“The safety, care and well-being of those in our custody remain a fundamental priority,” the statement reads. “The Division is conducting a comprehensive review and is fully cooperating with the ongoing investigation.”
St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer also expressed condolences to McDile’s friends and family.
“We share the community’s concerns over the lives lost in the city’s care at the City Justice Center and we support a detailed investigation into Dametria’s death,” Spencer said in a statement. “We expect full cooperation from our departments and staff in that review.”
Three people died in custody of the troubled facility last year. Samuel Hayes Jr., 31, died in custody last July after he was placed in a restraint chair; 54-year-old James Earl Johnson died in November after suffering a medical emergency; and Derek Dean, 48, died last March.
Two months after Hayes’ death, his mother filed a wrongful-death lawsuit saying that her son did not resist arrest when he was placed in a restraint chair and that he fell to the floor multiple times, based on security camera footage.
The lawsuit was filed against corrections staff, nurses, the city and a corrections-focused health care provider. The suit also claims that Hayes was left convulsing for about 20 minutes and that nurses and other officers failed to follow city policies regarding the use of restraint chairs by neglecting to regularly check on him.
The cause of death for Hayes is pending an investigation as the lawsuit is ongoing.
At least 11 of the 22 detainee deaths that have occurred since 2020 were due to some sort of medical emergency or health condition, according to public safety, police and medical examiner records. Four deaths were ruled suicides by the city medical examiner, and another potential suicide death was reported by police.
The medical examiner’s office declared four deaths were accidents due to drug overdoses and one death was ruled a homicide since the person died from a gunshot wound the person had before they were detained.
The jail has been riddled with internal problems and controversy for years as many jail-reform advocates have called for better conditions due to frequent 23-hour lockdowns, unclean conditions and neglect.
In November, 23-year-old Damorieon Simms was charged in an assault that left corrections officer Jerome Dunning unconscious — the incident occurred a day after detainee James Earl Johnson died while in custody.
Nate Hayward has served as jail commissioner since September. The jail has experienced frequent leadership turnover in recent years, with successive leaders pledging to hire more staff and turn things around.
This story has been updated with the identity of the woman and comments from St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer.
