Editor’s note: This story contains a description of suicide. If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, or the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.
The family of a woman who died by suicide in the Deschutes County Jail last year filed a lawsuit against the county Friday.
A photo of Kendra Sawyer, who died Feb. 19, 2023, after detoxing from opioids and harming herself in the Deschutes County Jail.
Courtesy of Kent Sawyer / Courtesy of Kent Sawyer
Kendra Sawyer, 22, harmed herself inside the jail on Feb. 13, 2023, exactly one year ago this week. Sawyer had been arrested for a probation violation. She was struggling with active opioid addiction at the time, and going to jail sent her into severe withdrawal, said her father Kent Sawyer.
“It was basically cold turkey,” he said in a phone interview. “It was just so cruel. I’m filing the lawsuit to make sure other people don’t die.”
A photo of Kendra Sawyer and her father Kent Sawyer. Kendra Sawyer died Feb. 19, 2023, after detoxing from opioids and harming herself in the Deschutes County Jail.
Courtesy of Kent Sawyer / Courtesy of Kent Sawyer
Kent Sawyer’s complaint in federal court alleges that county staff should have known Kendra Sawyer was in need of medical care, suicidal and in the midst of a mental health crisis, but officials still did not provide treatment or adequate monitoring.
“It was glaringly obvious at this time — even to her fellow inmates, with no medical or mental health training—that Kendra was going through severe withdrawals, in both mental and physical pain, and was in great need of medical intervention,” the complaint states.
The lawsuit alleges the county failed to follow its own policies to address withdrawal and handle inmates with medical problems. It also alleges that Deschutes County Parole and Probation Officer Sarah Mosely wasn’t required by policy or training to communicate vital information about Sawyer’s background to jail staff, such as previous suicide attempts.
“The County does not agree with allegations in the complaint and intends to vigorously defend the lawsuit,” Deschutes County Counsel Dave Doyle said in a statement.
The lawsuit names Mosely, Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson, Corrections Division Commander Michael Shults, Sgt. Ashton Kent and three deputies: Neil Marchington, Gunnar Johnson and Jackson Rich.
The complaint seeks a jury trial and unspecified damages for negligence, wrongful death and civil rights violations. It notes two other detoxing or suicide deaths at the Deschutes County Jail since 2014.
A 2019 investigation by OPB, KUOW and the Northwest News Network, found that over a decade-long period, at least 306 people across the Northwest had died after being taken to a county jail — often by suicide — and that Oregon and Washington had failed to keep a comprehensive count of the death toll.
