According to recent reporting, County officials are now allocating millions in jail-related spending, sparking debate about transparency and oversight in how taxpayer dollars are used. Money is being moved; what’s missing are the reforms that would have saved Christian’s life.
Below is what must change.
1. Create an independent jail oversight board with subpoena power
Montgomery County cannot police itself. A meaningful oversight board must include:
- Community members with no ties to law enforcement
- Civil-rights representation
- Medical professionals
- Family advocates
- Public reporting obligations
Subpoena power is essential. Without it, oversight becomes performative. Christian’s death — and the failure to indict — shows the danger of relying on internal investigations.
2. Mandate real-time transparency on use of force and medical incidents
The public should not learn about deaths in custody months later through litigation or leaked documents.
I propose a mandatory 24-hour public reporting requirement for:
- All use-of-force incidents
- All deployments of pepper spray or tasers
- All restraint-chair placements
- All medical emergencies requiring CPR, Narcan, or hospitalization
Every law enforcement agency that touches the jail must follow the same rule. True transparency cannot be optional.
3. Enact legally enforceable “safe restraint” standards
Christian was bent at the waist, secured in a chair, spit-hooded, and pressed down upon — precisely the combination that every major medical association warns can lead to asphyxia.
Montgomery County must adopt and codify:
- A ban on compressive pressure on the neck, back, or torso
- A ban on bent-over restraint positions
- Strict time limits on restraint chairs
- Prohibition on hooding individuals whose breathing is compromised
- Mandatory removal from restraints at the first sign of medical distress
These guidelines must carry legal consequences for violations — not just “policy reviews.”
4. Tie all future jail funding to measurable accountability benchmarks
The ongoing debate over Montgomery County’s new jail spending, as reported recently, underscores the need for public conditions on budgets. Before any new dollar is spent, the County should be required to meet performance benchmarks:
- Reduction in use-of-force incidents
- Demonstrated improvements in medical-emergency response times
- Adoption of nationally recognized correctional-health standards
- Public quarterly audits
Taxpayer dollars must buy more than bricks, cameras, or a bigger facility. They must buy a safer one.
5. Require body-camera and surveillance preservation until independent review is complete
In far too many in-custody death cases, video evidence “goes missing,” is overwritten, or is selectively released. Christian’s case showed the critical importance of footage — and the pattern of delayed transparency.
All video involving use of force, restraints, or medical emergencies should be preserved for a minimum of five years and automatically forwarded to the oversight board.
6. Establish a countywide critical-incident review team led by civilian experts
This team — similar to models used in major cities — would investigate:
- Any in-custody death
- Any hospitalization resulting from force or restraint
- Any death involving a jail medical contractor
Importantly, law enforcement leadership should not control this team, nor should they be permitted to investigate themselves.
A settlement is the beginning, not the end
Christian Black’s family did not fight for money — they fought for truth. And while the County’s $7 million settlement speaks volumes about its failures, it will be meaningless without sweeping structural reform.
The community deserves a jail that does not break the people it is supposed to hold. Families deserve to know that what happened to Christian will not happen again. And the County must understand that meaningful accountability cannot be purchased — it must be built.
Montgomery County has a choice: Use this moment to transform the system or continue funding the same failures that cost Christian his life.
Christian deserved better. The community deserves better. And the time for real reform is now.
Robert L. Gresham, is a civil rights lawyer for the estate of Christian Black.
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