6-06/010.00 Attempt Suicide/Suicides

In the event of the discovery of an attempted or completed suicide, personnel shall:

• Call for assistance
• Request paramedics if necessary
• Lockdown the immediate area
• Obtain the emergency response kit
• In the case of hanging, use the “cut down tool,” from the emergency response kit to immediately cut down the inmate. The preservation of life should be the primary consideration
• Monitor the inmate’s airway, breathing, and circulation
• Render first aid and/or Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) if necessary
• Notify the watch sergeant and the watch commander as soon as possible
• Initiate a Behavioral Observation and Mental Health Referral Form (SH-J-407).

Mandatory notifications regarding suicide attempts by adult inmates in station jails shall be made per CDM section 4-07/010.00, "Notification and Reporting of Significant Incidents."

Should an adult inmate in a station jail die as a result of suicide, the procedures described in MPP section 4-22/050.00, "Suicide" and CDM section 4-10/050.00, "Inmate Death - Reporting and Review Process" shall be followed.

Should a juvenile detained in a station jail attempt suicide or die as a result of suicide, the station watch commander shall, in addition to the aforementioned policies pertaining to deaths of adult inmates, notify the appropriate court and parent, guardian, or person standing in loco parentis, in accordance with Title 15, Minimum Standards for Local Detention Facilities, sections 1046, “Death in Custody,” and 1047, “Serious Illness or Injury of a Minor in an Adult Detention Facility.”

EMERGENCY RESPONSE KITS

Emergency response kits shall be kept in the station jail area for deployment in the event of an attempted suicide.

JAILER RESPONSIBILITIES

In cases where station jailers encounter persons who have attempted suicide the emergency response kit shall be deployed.

The emergency response kit contains the following items:

*Caution should be exercised whenever the emergency response kit is deployed. The cut down tool is a security risk and should be accounted for at all times.

Personnel assigned to the station jail shall be responsible for the inspection of the emergency response kit at the beginning of their shift to ensure the tamper-resistant tape is intact. This inspection shall be documented in the e-UDAL.

If the tamper-resistant tape is broken or the kit appears to have been opened, notification to a supervisor shall be made. When the emergency response kit has been deployed, or has been opened for any reason, the supervisor shall inspect the container to ensure all of the above listed items are present, and apply new tamper-resistant tape.