TOWN HALL MAY 8 ON SAN DIEGO IN-CUSTODY DEATHS AND ALLEGED MISTREATMENT OF INMATES

East County News Service

May 7, 2025 (San Diego)—The Racial Justice Coalition of San Diego (RJCSD) and Community Advocates for Just and Moral Governance (MoGo) invite you to attend a Community Town Hall centered on the ongoing inhumane treatment of people detained in the San Diego County Jails. The event will be held on Thursday, May 8 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at theChristian Fellowship Congregational Church UCC, 1601 Kelton Rd., San Diego 92114.

The organizations will provide an update on a class action lawsuit initiated by the San Francisco law firm Rosen Bien Galvan and Grunfeld on behalf of 14 families who have relatives in San Diego County jails. Their presentation will include a discussion of recent developments in San Diego jails and what work has been done to improve the conditions of inmates.

Civil Rights Attorney Julia Yoo will provide insights on her legal work on behalf of impacted families who have also been injured or died while in custody in San Diego jails.

Annie Lin, UCSD Student and member of Students against Mass Incarceration, will offer comments from the perspective of a student organizer and community member who has been actively engaged in Social Justice work. 

Genevieve Jones-Wright, Director, MoGo, will be the Moderator for this discussion and Buki Domingos, co-founder of RJCSD, will provide a closing statement.

 There will be an opportunity for a community dialogue and space for our community partners and impacted family members to share their stories.

A state audit found 185 jail deaths from 2006 to 2020  under then-Sheriff BIll Gore exceeded the number of in-custody deaths for other major California counties.

Current Sheriff Kelly Martinez has implemented numerous reforms that have signicantly reduced, but not eliminated jail deaths. In February, a lawsuit was filed against the county over the murder and reported torture of a man by his cellmate.The 2021 death of a woman at Las Colinas detention facility in Santee  resulted in a nurse charged with involuntary manslaughter, though she was later acquitted.

There have also been allegations of mistreatment and/or negligence, including a man who died after suffering severe head injuries. His family filed a lawsuit this week against the County.  In May 2024, the County paid out a settlement of $10.5 million for a woman left brain-damaged due to an untreated medical condition while in local custody. Yet another settlement addressed access for disabled inmates.