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Commission hears jail liaison report citing medication and services concerns for inmates
Summary
Liaison reported roughly 20 jail calls during Feb 11'Mar 26 and recurring complaints that inmates are not receiving prescribed medications and that local resources for in-jail care (including for a transgender inmate) are limited; volunteers were reminded to complete logs used in the Board of Supervisors annual report.
The Humboldt County Human Rights Commission received a correctional facilities liaison report on April 2 detailing inmate complaints and outreach activity.
The liaison said volunteers logged about 20 calls from Feb. 11 through March 26 involving one female and three adult males. The most frequent grievance raised by callers, the liaison said, concerned access to prescribed medications and limited behavioral-health services inside the jail. "There is a very great consistency of complaint that they're not getting what they were prescribed," the liaison said.
The liaison described a recent case involving a transgender inmate who sought appropriate in-jail treatment; staff and volunteers tried multiple referrals but found limited local resources. Volunteers noted that posters in the jail should clearly display the commission's phone number so detained people can contact the liaison program.
Commissioners were reminded that message-line logs are important: "that information is part of what makes up the annual report to the Board of Supervisors," the liaison said, and volunteers were asked to complete logs to demonstrate activity.
No formal motion or vote resulted from the report. Commissioners discussed gathering a copy of the jail poster to review whether the commission's contact information is visible and agreed to follow up on outreach materials and volunteer scheduling for May shifts.
Next steps: staff will attempt to locate current jail posters and provide a copy to volunteers for clarity; volunteers will continue to complete call logs to inform the annual report.
