Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Why Jails Pose Such a High Suicide Risk (2015)

"We’ll never know exactly what happened to Sandra Bland, the 28-year-old black woman who police said was found hanged to death in her Texas jail cell last week following her arrest after a traffic stop. Even though the last two days’ worth of news - the official autopsy, the fact that Bland had told prison officials she had attempted suicide earlier this year, and a video in which she had recounted her struggles with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder - do point to suicide, there’s still a formal investigation to be done. And even if that investigation further confirms the official story, it won’t bring us any closer to knowing what was going on in her head when she decided to take her life."

Notice about external resources

These links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. NIC bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.