Nearly two years after former vice chair of the St. Louis Detention Facilities Oversight Board was arrested while visiting the St. Louis City Justice Center, they were found not guilty of the charges.
St. Louis Associate Circuit Court Judge Rochelle M. Woodiest granted Janis Mensah’s motion to be found not guilty of the municipal charges of trespassing and resisting arrest on Thursday.
During a press conference outside City Hall in downtown St. Louis on Thursday, Mensah said the motion was granted because the city could not prove the charges were warranted. As a person who identifies a transgender, Mensah said they have nearly a 50% chance of being incarcerated.
“It's been two very long, very difficult years,” Mensah said. “It's been two years that has — just like the morning I went to the jail — has been marked with death, and each death was certainly very difficult for their families.
Mensah said ultimately they believe the jail should be closed. But in the short term, Mensah said detainees should have better access to water and recreational activities. They said they should also have access to plants and the sun, and the ability to stay in touch with family members.
"Jail is not meant to support life," Mensah said. "It is a place that supports and enforces violence and torturous conditions and death."
Mensah was visiting the city jail on August 31, 2023, after 55-year-old Terrance Smith died in custody due to high blood pressure and heart problems, according to the city Medical Examiner’s Office.
31-year-old Samuel Hayes Jr. last weekend became the 20th person to die in custody at the CJC since 2020.
Mensah said they were sitting patiently in a jail waiting room to do their site visit when then-Commissioner Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah instructed staff to call the police and remove them. Mensah said police unjustly beat them unconscious during the arrest.
Police claimed in court documents that they were forced to remove Mensah after they ignored orders and refused to leave the property.
Z Gorley, communications director for ArchCity Defenders, the legal advocacy group that represented Mensah, said it’s interesting the city dedicated resources to criminalize someone in a role designated to increase transparency and accountability for the deadly operations at the CJC.
“This began with the previous administration and has continued with this administration, both of which had every opportunity to change course,” Gorley said. “Now Janis has been acquitted, but people continue to suffer and die in the jail.
“We are glad to stand with Janis and anyone else holding the city and its dangerous jail to account.”
Earlier this week, the Justice for Janis Coalition submitted an open letter to St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer, asking her to drop the charges.
The petition garnered around 600 signatures from St. Louis community members, including Board of Aldermen President Megan Green, 14th Ward Alderman Rasheen Aldridge and former DFOB secretary Pam Walker.
Nearly 30 Justice for Janis coalitions also signed the petition.
Although Mensah was acquitted, they said Spencer never responded to the letter.
Members of the coalition on Thursday called Spencer out for the lack of response and asked her to take the poor conditions at the city jail seriously, highlighting the most recent death at the jail last weekend.
“Shame on you Cara Spencer,” shouted Sasha Zemmel, a local activist. “You should have responded to the abolitionist calls and emails. It is by the grace of God that the case was dismissed, and we are all happy, but this is not justice.”
After the conference, Zemmel said she does understand that Spencer is busy, but it’s not an excuse.
“I know she’s got a lot going on and there’s so many things with the tornado and potholes, but this is about people, and I think we have a moral obligation to put people before property,” Zemmel added.
“This isn’t just about Janis, this is about an ongoing issue at the jail — it echoes a bigger problem. I hope that in the future the mayor will respond, because silence doesn't make us feel good, it almost screams guilt.”
This story was updated to add comments from Janis Mensah, Z Gorley and Sasha Zemmel.
