Downtown was the site of a 100-person march and candlelight vigil commemorating the 70 inmates who have died since Sheriff Bill Waybourn took office in 2017.
Friday night, nearly 100 people held a rally and candlelight vigil outside the Tarrant County Corrections Center to remember the 70 inmates who have died in custody at the Tarrant County Jail since Sheriff Bill Waybourn took office in 2017. The chant of “no justice, no peace” rang throughout the evening. After a prayer led by Joshua Lucas, co-chair of the interfaith advocacy group the Justice Network of Tarrant County, Tarrant County Democratic Party County Chair Crystal Gayden read the names of the deceased, including Mason Yancy. Just last week, on December 23, the 31-year-old Grapevine resident and co-founder of Open Carry Texas was arrested on drug charges and last Friday died from an alleged lack of medical care for diabetes. Tarrant County Young Democrats member Sam Hallerman urged city leaders to create meaningful change and called for Waybourn’s removal. The Tarrant County Jail is in the top three in the state for inmate deaths since 2017, and a jail standards review in December 2023 found the jail not in compliance. Sheriff Waybourn has continued to blame drug use and alleged border problems for his stark inability to keep his inmates safe. Tarrant County Commissioner Alisa Simmons ended the evening by calling for accountability across the board.
Photo by Juan R. Govea.Suzanne Mabe: “What I read in the paper was that they withheld diabetic medication from this young man, but regardless they should have gotten him his medication. The mayor and all talk about wanting Fort Worth to be a world-class city, but you can’t have this in a world-class city.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.With a sign reading, “Medical Issues Ignored = Death!,” Daniel Wood said, “My friend died last Friday, Mason Yancy. He was in custody. It was known that he had diabetes. What we are hearing is that he was denied insulin for two days, had a seizure, and went into a coma and died.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Tarrant County Commissioner Alisa Simmons said the leadership behind the jail deaths is “disappointing because [a death has] happened yet again, and I’m really not surprised because we keep doing things the same way, and when you do things the same way, you get the same result, and I appreciate all these people out here.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Jake Davis, finance director for the Tarrant County Democratic Party: “Law enforcement are to serve and protect, but denying access to medical attention in jail is not protecting, and it’s not serving. … the Eighth Amendment right stated that denying an incarcerated person medical attention constitutes unfair and unusual punishment and should not be legal. For me, this is state-sanctioned murder at most and voluntary manslaughter at least.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Tarrant County Young Democrats member Sam Hallerman: Mason Yancy’s death is “not just a local issue. This is a systemic failure that characterizes the American justice system compared to international justice systems.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Photo by Juan R. Govea.Jason Ballmann, Tarrant County Democratic Party volunteer: “When the 70th death occurred this past week, we knew something just continues to be wrong with the county jail system here. Sheriff Waybourn is the No. 1 person to blame and why he and the county judge, Tim O’Hare, aren’t doing anything but shrugging their shoulders. We all have a right to be safe and healthy in this county.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.Jenia Kennedy Silver: “I survived police brutality in 2001, and that’s why I’m here. I don’t think excessive force or whatever constitutionality they want to claim the death upon should have occurred. There shouldn’t be people dying in this jail. I think it’s a tragedy.” Photo by Juan R. Govea.
