ST. LOUIS — U.S. Rep Cori Bush, D-ӣƵ, demanded the jail’s commissioner answer questions about the facility’s policies, procedures, conditions and treatment in the wake of three men dying at the City Justice Center within the past six weeks.
Rep. Bush sent a letter on Tuesday to the ӣƵ Corrections Commissioner Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah giving the head of the jail until Nov. 3 to answer questions about policies related to medication distribution, use-of-force of detainees, solitary confinement policies and more.
The congresswoman also expressed concerns about reports of lack of clean laundry and detainees not being able to meet with attorneys or family, comments that came after talking with detainees and staff during her visit to the jail last month.
But most of her letter on Tuesday targeted the jail’s medical and healthcare policies for people incarcerated and awaiting trial.
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ӣƵ Mayor Tishaura O. Jones released a statement Monday announcing she was creating a new position within the department of health to oversee medical operations at the jail.
Jones’ statement on Monday also confirmed at least one company had submitted a proposal, following her announcement last month that the city would not renew a contract with the jail’s medical provider, Corizon,
Bush, a former nurse, stated in her letter Tuesday that she wants more than a new provider.
“Replacing this company with another private actor will not automatically solve systemic issues at CJC,” stated Bush. “In my experience as a health-care provider, Corizon has never operated as an effective or responsible steward of the health and wellness of people in carceral settings.”
U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, right, and ӣƵ Mayor Tishaura O. Jones look at flood damage in Ellendale on Wednesday, July, 27, 2022.
Corizon is the largest for-profit prison healthcare provider in the country, providing medical coverage for over 300,000 inmates. But despite nailing billion-dollar contracts with dozens of states, the company and its related companies have faced hundreds of lawsuits for medical negligence.
Bush’s progressive Democratic partner in the U.S. Senate, Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) has raised concerns about Corizon’s liability following its recent bankruptcy filing.
ӣƵ City Counselor Sheena Hamilton has a pending lawsuit against Corizon’s insurance company because of the city’s financial liability for jail deaths.
Juwon Carter, 44, died after a medical emergency on Saturday, city officials said. Two of the incarcerated men who died in August had family members who expressed concerns about medical negligence in jail.
Carlton Bernard’s autopsy on Monday revealed he died from a lack of insulin and dehydration. Terrence Smith’s court records show he was hospitalized after falling off the bunk bed in his cell, and his daughter told the Post-Dispatch that he was never the same.
Rep. Bush is the latest and arguably most high-profile politician in recent weeks to raise concerns about the city jail’s operations. Missouri Sen. Steve Roberts called for a state audit, and multiple city aldermen have joined criminal justice advocates to call for the firing of Clemons-Abdullah as jail commissioner.
Cori Bush, center, who upset U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay to capture the Democratic nomination for Missouri's 1st Congressional District, joins reelected ӣƵ Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner, left, and then Treasurer Tishaura Jones at a press conference at the Gateway Arch on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020.
“I am angry. Behind these walls injustice is a regular occurrence,” said Kayla Reed, executive director of Action STL, who addresses the press after touring both ӣƵ jails on Saturday, April 24, 2021, outside the Medium Security Institution known as the workhouse. Behind Reed, stands from left to right, ӣƵ Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, Congresswoman Cori Bush, D-ӣƵ, and Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Advocates rally outside the City Justice Center in ӣƵ for better conditions and transparency in recent jail deaths.
