SPRC Customized Information Series

This report discusses the role correctional officers must play in dealing with inmate suicides. Especially, those officers in jails. The suicide rate for local jails is about four times that of the U.S. as a whole with the rate for jails of 100 beds or less being nearly 10 times greater. Sections of this publication cover: inmates and suicide risk; recognizing the warning signs; responding to the warning signs; and procedures addressing suicide prevention in correctional facilities.