Last Updated on September 8, 2023, 10:10 AM | Published: September 7, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma County Detention Center or Jail has failed another Oklahoma Department of Health (ODH) inspection.
And, without mentioning the inspection, CEO Brandi Garner seemed to be responding to it in her presentation to the Criminal Justice Authority Tuesday.
The ODH report concludes that at the time of the inspection on July 26, the facility was “not in substantial compliance.”
The report lists four major standards that inspectors found to be out of compliance revealed by record reviews, video reviews, and staff interviews:
- “Hourly Site Checks” — The inspection found that several sight checks or cell inspections on floors 8, 6, and the men’s holding tank at the intake area either had not been carried out and/or were not recorded. Staff acknowledged to inspectors that site checks had not been carried out during the time spans in question. In one case in the men’s holding tank, detention staff did not do the required 30-minute site checks and let one detainee who passed out remain in the same position on the floor over five hours from 1:54 AM to 6:42 AM.
- “Notify of Serious Injury” — ODH inspectors found that in two cases there had been serious enough injury to require their transport to an outside medical facility. No notification was given to ODH. The requirement is to notify ODH the next day.
- “Eliminate Pests/Control” — A long list of findings by inspectors shows that pests — specifically bed bugs — are still a substantial problem in the Jail.
- “Observation MED/PSY Risk” — ODH inspectors found instances where 15-minute interval site checks were not conducted on floor 13, which is reserved for the sickest inmates. They also found one instance where hours went by for one patient on the “D” pod on 13 without a site check. At one point, medical staff had attempted a “med pass” or to give medication. When the inmate did not respond, staff documented it as a refusal to take their medication. After almost five hours, including the med pass attempt, the patient was found “unresponsive” in that cell. Detention officers do not dispense medications even though they accompany med staff in passing medications.
Turn Key Health is the contractor for all medical and mental health services in the Oklahoma County Jail and Oklahoma State Representative Jon Echols is the co-founder and president.
Jail pest control efforts
The report of the Jail CEO Brandi Garner to the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority on Tuesday pointed to efforts to respond to the persistent pest problems in the Jail. Garner and staff members referred to the ODH several times but did not mention the Jail’s failed inspection in July.
Garner reported that 1,725 new mattresses have already been purchased and deployed to replace old, cracked, and open mattresses that harbor bed bugs. Another 400 are on the way and should be delivered by the “end of October.”
After the meeting, Garner talked to Free Press about efforts to control pests in the Jail.
“So mattresses that they had before are cheap, and they would tear easily,” said Garner. “And, then, it would open up all the fibers inside. And that’s exactly where the bedbugs would nest.”
“Now they don’t have that ability, because it’s all heat-sealed,” Garner continued. “It’s a very thick fabric, okay. And the inmates really don’t want to tear them up because they’re so much thicker. They’re more comfortable.”
A position has been posted for a full-time, certified, pest applicator to be on-site at the Jail, said Garner.
Garner told Free Press that they considered the full-time pest control position to be an important next step.
“It’s something that I didn’t know I could do,” Garner told us. “I’ve always been told I couldn’t, but now, that the Health Department has put their stamp on it we’re going to move forward.”
A painting program is also underway as we reported earlier.
Tuesday, Jail staff added more details about the cell repair program that is supposed to help improve the health of the inmates.
Specifically, two different kinds of paint are being used.
On the cell walls that touch the outside brickwork, moisture-sealing paint will be used. The remainder of the cells are being painted with a “urethane enamel” paint that is thick and will seep into the pores of the concrete walls to try and eliminate hiding places for bedbugs.
Also, the two paints are a bright color intended to reveal dirt and grime more easily and help them spot the presence of bed bugs.
Cell doors are also being painted with the same bright paint inside and out.
Jail staff reported Tuesday that the cells that have been completed were getting a 28-foot-candle reading before the painting and now are getting “almost a 100.”
A foot-candle (or foot-candle, fc, lm/ft2, or ft-c) is a measurement of light intensity according to one commercial lighting website. One foot-candle is supposed to be enough light to saturate a one-foot square with one lumen of light.
Health Department report
This is the report by the ODH from the visit on July 26 and released on August 9:
oklahoma-co-07-26-23
Founder, publisher, and editor of Oklahoma City Free Press. Brett continues to contribute reports and photography to this site as he runs the business.
