Over a three-day period, three incarcerated individuals died from “medical situations,” according to a statement from the Montgomery County Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DOCR).
The deaths were unrelated, and they all occurred on different days, according to DOCR.
Around 4:30 p.m., on Tuesday, a person being held at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in Clarksburg (MCCF) Medical Unit was found unresponsive, the statement said. Facility nurses and staff performed life-saving measures until Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) arrived to transport the individual to Holy Cross Hospital, according to DOCR.
The next morning, the hospital reported that the person had a significant medical event, and that afternoon, they told DOCR that they died, the statement said.
Around 10:43 p.m. on Wednesday, Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring informed DOCR that one of its patients, an incarcerated individual, died after receiving medical care there for a week. DOCR said the person had a “serious medical diagnosis” and that a medical autopsy would be conducted.
On Thursday, around 4:36 p.m., at the county corrections facility in Clarksburg, there was a medical emergency reported in a cell, according to the statement. Correctional staff began life-saving measures before MCFRS responded to take over, the statement said.
MCFRS spokesperson Daniel Ogren told MoCo360 that personnel responded to the facility for a call about a man in his 40s suffering from a cardiac arrest. The incarcerated individual was pronounced dead at 5:07 p.m., the DOCR said.
Montgomery County Police determined that there were no signs of foul play in either of the correctional facility deaths, and the official causes of death will be determined by the Medical Examiner’s Office, according to DOCR.
DOCR stated that this is a “very short period” for three deaths of incarcerated individuals to occur and that this trend is also occurring elsewhere.
“Many correctional systems are experiencing a significant increase in those who have acute and chronic medical conditions that become involved in the criminal justice system,” DOCR said.
In the statement, DOCR said that any death within its care, custody and control is “the worst imaginable event that can occur within our organization” and that “we extend our condolences to the families on their loss.”
DOCR said that the organization plans to fully cooperate with any investigations by the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, Montgomery County Police and the Medical Examiner’s Office.