United States Attorney’s Office Reaches Settlement to Reform Wayne County Jail

DETROIT - The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan has reached a landmark settlement agreement with Wayne County concerning inmates who have disabilities. After receiving numerous complaints, the U.S. Attorney's Office opened an investigation of the Wayne County Jail under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. Sec. 12132. The complaints alleged that Wayne County routinely failed to provide crucial services to inmates who have disabilities, including access to appropriate prescription medication, mental health services, and medical equipment. Additionally, some complaints alleged a failure to conduct medical and mental health assessments. The U. S. Attorney's Office also learned that eight inmates committed suicide over a thirteen-month period during 2016 and 2017. The investigation substantiated several of the complaints and yielded additional concerns regarding the services, programs, and activities provided in the Wayne County Jail.

"Wayne County has a long and troubled history of providing inadequate services to inmates who have disabilities," said U.S. Attorney Dawn N. Ison. "We recognize that Wayne County is transitioning inmates into a new facility. However, a new building does not ensure access to those vital services. This agreement addresses systemic issues that have prevented inmates who have disabilities from equal access to services, programs, and activities while at the Wayne County Jail. Wayne County has fully cooperated with our investigation and this settlement agreement demonstrates our shared commitment to improving services for inmates with disabilities at the Wayne County Jail."

The settlement agreement requires Wayne County to implement a series of reforms at the Wayne County Jail, including the following:

• Procedures to identify inmates who have disabilities when they arrive to the jail and programs that will allow each inmate access to services no matter where they are assigned within the facility;
• Access to physical health, mental health, and dental services for all inmates who have disabilities, including programs like detoxication and treatment for opioid use disorder;
• Programs to ensure the appropriate administration of medication to inmates who have disabilities; and
• Robust revisions to the suicide prevention program.

To ensure compliance with the agreement, Wayne County will provide compliance reports to the U.S. Attorney's Office and will also retain at least one expert consultant to help implement the terms of this agreement. The agreement will remain in effect for a term of three years, unless Wayne County demonstrates durable compliance.

The investigation was led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shannon Ackenhausen and Michael El-Zein of the Civil Rights Unit, and Executive Assistant United States Attorney Luttrell Levingston.

The full and fair enforcement of the ADA is a priority of the U.S. Attorney's Office. The Civil Rights Unit was established in 2010, with the mission of prioritizing federal civil rights enforcement. For more information on the Office's civil rights efforts, including a copy of the agreement, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/programs/civil-rights.

Individuals who believe they have been subjected to discrimination or experienced a civil rights violation can submit a complaint with the U.S. Attorney's Office by email at [email protected] or by phone at (313) 226-9151. Complaints can also be submitted to the Civil Rights Division through its complaint portal.