VOICES: We demand justice, transparency, accountability for jail deaths

On March 24, Christian Black was killed in the Montgomery County Jail and on May 2 the incident was ruled a homicide. On May 6, The Germantown City Hall building was packed full, with Christian’s friends and family and members of the Montgomery County Jail Coalition spilling into the lobby.

During public comment, Christian’s family remembered him as a son, brother, and friend. Community members demanded action from the Board of County Commissioners to stand up against the violence and abuse suffered by their neighbors in the jail. When the time for public comment ended, the commissioners motioned to adjourn the meeting. No response to the grieving family who stood bravely before them. No response to the gravely concerned community asking them to lead.

Sadly, this is what our community has come to expect from our county leadership - silence and inaction. The Montgomery County Jail Coalition has been calling county leadership to stand with those who elected them and demand better for our community for years. Meanwhile, our friends, family, and neighbors continue to die in custody prior to being convicted of any crime.

Silence and inaction is no longer acceptable. We need county leaders who will truly lead, who will stand with their community, who will join us in demanding that being arrested should not be a death sentence. In fact, we demand it.

We demand justice. We insist that the county commissioners stand with their constituents and the family of Christian Black in calling for the arrest, indictment, and prosecution of all jail employees responsible for Christian’s death. We expect that all NaphCare employees involved in Christian’s death be investigated as well. Furthermore, the state authorities should conduct these investigations rather than City of Dayton employees who already have close relationships with the Sheriff’s Office.

These investigations are a necessary first step to better understanding the culture of violence and abuse that plagues the jail, so that the necessary changes can be made to keep our community safe. Christian Black and his family deserve justice. Our community deserves to know that folks in custody of the county will not have their human rights violated.

We demand transparency. We insist that the county establish a civilian oversight committee tasked with providing oversight of the jail. It has become clear that those responsible for ensuring safety for those detained in the jail have failed. Internal audits and investigations have led to little change, as our neighbors continue to die inside the jail. Our community deserves to understand what happens inside those walls and to be able to provide direct input regarding the changes that need to be made.

We demand accountability. We insist that the county develop performance standards that carry significant financial penalties for NaphCare regarding staffing and response time to medical emergencies and requests for medical care. The money of taxpayers continues to fund a contract for a for profit medical service provider that has proved time and time again that they are ill-equipped to handle the needs of the population of our jail. Our community deserves to know that our tax dollars are going toward competent medical care in the jail and that our county leaders will hold NaphCare responsible to provide that care.

We demand leadership from those who we have elected to lead. We have elected the county commissioners to protect everyone in our community, including those who find themselves in jail. We have voiced our concerns. It is time for our county leaders to speak up and act.