Essex County Prisoner Dies In Custody; 2nd Inmate Death In 2 Weeks – Patch

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Less than two weeks after an inmate at the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark died from “medical distress,” another prisoner has passed away while in custody, authorities confirmed Wednesday.

According to a county spokesperson:

“On Tuesday, May 24, an inmate was found to be unresponsive and was pronounced dead by University Hospital. Please note that soon after the official death in custody pronouncement, the Essex County Prosecutor and the Medical Examiner’s Office were timely notified and are conducting the required death in custody investigation in conjunction with the Essex County Correctional Facility Internal Affairs Unit. It should be further noted that preliminarily, no obvious evidence of foul play and or suicide were noted at the scene. The investigation is underway and postmortem examination is pending.”

No additional information was immediately available.

Another inmate in the custody of the county died on May 15, authorities previously reported. The 66-year-old prisoner was experiencing “medical distress” that morning and was taken to University Hospital, where he passed away. No foul play is suspected, county officials said.

VIOLENCE AT THE ECCF

With advocates, family members and staff demanding changes, Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. said the county was launching an “independent review” of the facility, which is located in Newark and is paid to house inmates from Union County.

But according to Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 106 — which represents sergeants, lieutenants, captains and investigators within the Essex County Department of Corrections — violent acts have continued to take place involving inmates in the county’s custody.

It isn’t only inmates who are at risk, union spokespeople say.

Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 106 previously told Patch that during the first six months of 2021, at least 21 officers were assaulted by inmates at the prison, sending 14 of them to a hospital emergency room. Over the same period, 81 staff members were reported being exposed or assaulted with a prisoner’s bodily fluids.

As prison staff become more worried about their own safety amid the violence, administrators have been warned — but haven’t acted, the union alleged in December.

“We have been alerting everyone from Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr., to the Essex County Board of Commissioners, and beyond for at least a year that there were serious issues with the current jail administration,” union spokespeople told Patch in a joint statement.

“These ranged from conflicts of interest to what we knew were — and are — imminent threats to the physical safety of prisoners and staff,” they continued. “All of our warnings went unheeded.”

When reached for comment about the recent incidents at the prison, Essex County Chief of Staff Phil Alagia said the county has made several investments during the last two years to improve safety at the prison.

They include:

• “Purchasing Chemical Detection Machines that can find traces of illegal substances in mail. This cost about $150,000 and has helped keep illegal substances, such as narcotics, out of the jail.”
• “Purchasing eight Cell Sense Machines at a cost of about $160,000 to help prevent hidden objects from being smuggled into the jail.”
• “Investing in purchasing and fitting new protection vests for corrections officers after the suggestion was made during a town hall meeting.”
• “Installing several new security cameras to enhance the safety of officers and inmates.”
• “Investing over $2 million in new technology this year to expand video courts and online communications for inmates, all with the goal of keeping the facility safe.”
• “Overstaffing the facility to ensure manpower is not an issue. We currently are operating over our budgeted staffing levels and anticipate bringing on another 50 new officers by the end of May.”

“The Essex County administration and leadership at the Essex County Correctional Facility take seriously our responsibility to provide a safe and secure atmosphere for the employees and the inmates at the ECCF,” Alagia said. “This is displayed by the fact that the ECCF has been accredited by the American Correctional Association since 2013.”

Sign up for Patch email newsletters. Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com