State Police Find Gaps in County Investigation of Jail Deaths

Multnomah County launched a one-year project meant to address criticisms and improve conditions at the jails.

The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office quietly released two state police reports last month identifying gaps in the sheriff’s internal investigations of two recent jail deaths.

The two reports, authored in February by Oregon State Police Lt. Sarah Kelly, offer a second opinion on the sheriff’s investigations of the suicide of Donovan Wood and the overdose of Josiah Pierce. They identify what appear to be a series of oversights by investigators, particularly in their scrutiny of Pierce’s death.

Source: State Police Find Gaps in County Investigation of Jail Deaths