Bismarck Tribune - Bismarck News - Inmate dies in apparent suicide

Inmate dies in apparent suicide

Nov 01, 2008 - 04:06:08 CDT

By JENNY MICHAEL
Bismarck Tribune

An inmate at the Burleigh County Detention Center has died in an apparent suicide.

Kevin Thomas Tormey, 48, died Thursday night in an apparent hanging in his cell.

Burleigh County Sheriff's Major Les Witkowski said jail staff found Tormey during a cell search around 10:30 p.m. Staff began resuscitation efforts, but Tormey was later declared dead. He said the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, which will investigate the death, has a log of when Tormey's cell was last checked before he was found.

Witkowski said an autopsy was planned for Friday. BCI will interview detention center staff as well as the seven or eight inmates in the same cell block as Tormey, Witkowski said.

Liz Brocker, a spokesperson for the attorney general's office, said she could neither confirm nor deny BCI's involvement with the investigation.

Witkowski said such investigations are turned over to BCI anytime the sheriff's department feels there may be a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest in doing the investigation internally. Detention center staff are employees of the sheriff's department.

"It's easier to have someone from the outside come in and do it than have a question raised,"he said.

Witkowski said staff at the detention center do cell checks at least once an hour, but usually more often than that. After conferring with Capt. Lisa Wicks, who runs the detention center, Witkowski said officers get around the cells more often at night.

Tormey had been in the detention center since Tuesday night, when he and three other people were arrested on charges related to an alleged heroin distribution operation. He was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and ingestion of a controlled substance. The drug paraphernalia charge refers to allegations that Tormey and others had latex balloons to package heroin.

Tormey had been accused of swallowing heroin as law enforcement approached on Tuesday, leading to the ingestion of a controlled substance charge. A co-defendant, Ted Pierce, remains hospitalized after swallowing some of the drug on Tuesday.

Tormey also was facing a revocation of probation from a possession of a controlled substance conviction. He had been convicted in July of possessing Adderall, an amphetamine used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and narcolepsy. He received a deferred imposition of sentence.

The suicide appears to be the first by a Burleigh County inmate since 1990 and the first in the current detention center. The last known suicide was that of Shawn Ray Price in May 1990. That also was a hanging.

The current detention center has been open since September 1992. Though there have been a number of suicide attempts since that time, the inmates in those instances have been stopped by jail staff. The detention center, which has a capacity of 138, currently houses 115 inmates.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com.)

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Comments

Online Editor wrote on Nov 11, 2008 6:36 AM:

" To Jaler: The Tribune believes in freedom of speech, we support to say what you feel. If you intend to post your comments on this site, you must follow the rules listed above the comment box. Your comment was not posted because it is potentially libelous - it contains facts that are not easily verified so it cannot be printed. "

jaler wrote on Nov 10, 2008 8:27 PM:

" Forgot to fill in the name for last comment about how the Bismarck Tribune censors these blogs. Where is freedom of speech? "

tax payer wrote on Nov 8, 2008 11:22 PM:

" Think about this. He killed himself, we no longer have to pay taxes to try him, feed and take care of him for the next how many years. What a shame he is gone. Oh ya and one less worry that he will be selling drugs to the children of this town. Darn~ 1 less worry and tax dependant. "

bigpoppakdog wrote on Nov 8, 2008 7:13 PM:

" cheese and rice people. An inmate killed himself while in prison. Not the first nor the last to do such a thing. If someone wants to end their own life they will be successful no matter where they are and no matter what you do. "

Mike R wrote on Nov 8, 2008 6:29 PM:

" If the ambulance is on speed dial, and you people are so worried about the fraction of a second response difference, it takes less time to hit one speed dial button than it does to dial 911. If you dial 911, you go to a dispatch center who will then call the ambulance. By calling the ambulance directly, they cut out the middleman and saved time. The call times are still logged so there is no way that this was done to cover up anything, so those who say "how long after the fact" have nothing to worry about. If you want to know what time the call went to the ambulance, it is still documented. There is no cover-up. Wow, get a clue. "

to Armymom wrote on Nov 8, 2008 12:43 PM:

" The county coroner pronounces deaths that are unattended not law enforcement in general. Sheriff Heinert may be acting coroner when the coroner is out of town but that may be a conflict because Heinert is in charge of the jail. Sounds like 911 and the Bismarck Police Department should have been called in before the body was moved if that didn't occur. "

armymom wrote on Nov 8, 2008 9:18 AM:

" To Sheila -- Your people "in the know" might not know that law enforcement can declare someone dead and if this inmate was declared dead, then 911 would NOT be called but the ambulance directly to transport to the mortuary or to where ever they would transport to. "

Sheila wrote on Nov 2, 2008 7:14 PM:

" I'm sure this won't look good for Heinert. I also understand from people "in the know" that 911 was NOT called when this happened. The ambulance garage was called directly, who know's how long after the fact. WOW "

Thankful Taxpayer wrote on Nov 1, 2008 8:13 PM:

" I cant believe how some people are always wanting to blame the wrong people when things dont go right.If somebody wants to commit suicide they will do it one way or another.It only takes a few minutes for a person to hang themselves.The jailers have a thankless job and the pay isnt all that great either.I would think that the reason that they do that job is because they want to help their community and I bet that they feel horrible that this happened during their watch.Every day they deal with and prevent many bad things from happening that I am sure that the general public never hears about.I know for a fact that they are very busy and the liability is great, they cant always prevent this from happening.When we see an officer maybe we should thank them for their dedication and service and not be so quick to criticize them. "

Either WAY wrote on Nov 1, 2008 7:59 PM:

" Its still a life that was lost sadly. Probably due to guilt, depression and no nurturing guidance or love as a child. Granted you can point blame but suicided is a devasting thing as someone always looses a loved one. I feel for the family or that one person who may have loved this man. Don't be so judgemental people until you walk in someones shoes you have no idea of their mindset. "

Whos to blame wrote on Nov 1, 2008 5:39 PM:

" There's only one person to blame for this - the suicide victim! No one wants that to happen, but when someone is suicidal there really isn't much anyone can do to stop that person outside of one-on-one 24/7 monitoring. I also agree that this person was old enough to be responsible for himself and take responsibility for his actions, as sad as they were. He had broken the law and was paying the consequences, which apparently he didn't like. He made a choice, and although no one else likes what he chose, he made the bottom line decision as to his circumstance. We can only hope that with this tragedy will come some hard life lessons for others who think drugs allow you to carry on a normal life. Obviously they do not, and if person felt such desperation to carry out this act, he wasn't going to be stopped. You want to place blame? Try blaming the drug dealers, try blaming the person or persons who first introduced him to this lifestyle, blame society for not taking a firmer stand in the drug war until it has finally gotten out of hand. Blame the people who don't want to pay higher taxes so our drug units can have more manpower and more tools to control this type of thing. There. Feel better now? "

pity wrote on Nov 1, 2008 4:08 PM:

" Suicide is a very selfish act!! Please remember that it only takes 2 pounds of pressure on the neck for 30 seconds before the person blacks out. So if a person wants to kill themself it doesn't take much and it doesn't take long. The jailers on duty are going through some real pain right now. the what if's roll through a persons head for days weeks even years. like i said it is a very selfish act that hits as many people as the drug addiction that probley attacked this poor soul in the first place. Please say a prayer for not only kevin and his family but also for the people who have to help clean up this God awful mess. "

Laura wrote on Nov 1, 2008 4:04 PM:

" Call me callous, but I'm not too broken up about it. We taxpayers would be paying for his comfy little bed, meals, and healthcare when needed. The guy was a drug dealer...many priors...obviously he knew he was guilty as sin, and that's why he hung himself. HE made his choice. Not the system. "

Stan wrote on Nov 1, 2008 1:45 PM:

" I get a rise out of reading people's comments. I get a rise out of those that can't resist jumping to conclusions and can't resist taking a shot at the man. As a former employee of a jail (not this one), as long as this person did not make comments or indication that he was suicidal, as long as the CO's working were making proper well being checks, and as long as this was properly documented the only person responsible is this man. As tragic as it may be, as long as the CO's were following policy and State laws that govern jail operations they did nothing wrong. My money is on the honest and hard working people that work at the BCDC. This man made a decision to end his life and is responsible for his decision. "

Don wrote on Nov 1, 2008 1:29 PM:

" Are YOU kidding me? You say that if the jailers had know Tormey was suicidal, they would have taken steps to prevent it? HOW are they to know he was suicidal if the man never said anything? That is why a jailer shouldn't just assume someone is not suicidal. You use common sense that after a person ingests heroin, is arrested and thrown in a cell, he just might be coming down from his heroin high and so needs to be watched more closely. Doesn't the jail have special cells for people like this? "

feed up taxpayor wrote on Nov 1, 2008 12:43 PM:

" inmates are very creative people and have lots of time on their hands to think about things. they are given scrubs to wear and they can use those to hang themselves. So if he was out on bond and hung himself would that have been any different? I agree with Are you kidding me, a person who is 48 years old and dealing heroin knows he is looking at some hard time. This wasn't his first time in trouble with the law either and it probably wasn't his first suicide attempt. He decided to take the easy way out instead of facing his punishment. Even if the jail had 15 minutes cell checks on him, he still would have been able accomplish the task. And not all cells are made for two they have individual cells also. You talk about tax payers dollar at work so if the CO's would have caught him in time, he would have been sent for a pysch eval and hospital stay and probably medication (so that his jail stay can be as pleasant as possible) which would be costing you and me as taxpayers more money!!!! "

To Pre Halloween wrote on Nov 1, 2008 12:05 PM:

" What on earth are you ranting about? This is the Burleigh COUNTY jail. There is no expansion slated for this. Check your facts (or lack thereof) before you go off on your "don't spend my money" tangent. "

Post Halloween wrote on Nov 1, 2008 11:50 AM:

" Pre Halloween, unless you were there in the discussion with the staff, I would not make an assumption. Staff at the detention center are very busy and by policy need to make rounds at least every 45 minutes to an hour. It does not take long for a person to die from hanging. It is sad that this event took place and I am sure that the staff will take the corrective actions that this will not happen again. Of all the suicide attempts that occur in the detention center in the past 18 years, I assure you that the staff are performing their duties to standards and making good use of our tax money. By the way, I do not work there. "

just say no wrote on Nov 1, 2008 11:04 AM:

" I'm shocked at how all these posts are suddenly made with no knowledge of ANYTHING yet confident the staff or "the system" is to blame. He should be held responsible for his own actions, including this final act. Unless investigation reveals that someone put a gun to his head and told him to hang himself, he's on his own and no on else is to blame. "

tony wrote on Nov 1, 2008 10:51 AM:

" maybe a bed sheet or with his clothing, duh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "

QUESTION wrote on Nov 1, 2008 10:12 AM:

" What in the world could he have possibly used to hang himself with anyway? they take away anything that is considered a harm to other inmates and their selves, such as shoe strings, necklaces, etc......oh and bed sheets - so honestly, what did he do or use to kill himself? and on the same hand, why didn't his cellmates alert the prison guards sooner? isn't it just a wonderful system we have.............NOT "

Are you kidding me Don wrote on Nov 1, 2008 9:30 AM:

" I would imagine he swallowed the heroin to avoid getting caught...not a suicide attempt. Other conditions would have been set had they known he was suicidal. What is wrong with this country...no matter what happens, someone else is always blamed for someone elses actions. Don't you think that at age 48, this man was responsible for his own decisions? "

Don wrote on Nov 1, 2008 8:41 AM:

" Why, if this man had ingested heroin in a balloon, wasn't he kept in a cell in which the jailers could keep a close eye on him? Especially since one of his buddies is still in the hospital for doing the same. "

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