A 16-year-old boy who died by suicide last year while in custody is at the center of a wrongful death lawsuit against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and others.
Joshua Keith Beasley Jr. was found dead on his back in his cell with a sheet tied around his neck at the Wayne Scott Unit prison on March 24, 2023.
His parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, and the University of Texas Medical Branch, a medical provider for both systems. The lawsuit alleges his death could have been prevented.
The lawsuit says staff members were required to make 15-minute check-ins on Beasley but had not checked up on him for more than two hours before his death, despite inmates nearby allegedly calling out concerns about Beasley harming himself. Since then, TDCJ fired seven employees based on their involvement, the lawsuit claims.
Beasley’s mother Amnisty Freelen said in a press release she hopes this lawsuit can change the system so no other mothers have this experience.
“I’ll never have full closure because my son died there," Freelan said. "But this lawsuit means there’s some accountability, and a possibility of change for the other kids suffering.”
A TDCJ spokesperson said in an email Wednesday that the agency does not comment on pending litigation.
Beasley had been incarcerated since he was 11 years old and struggled with his mental health. His symptoms only worsened in custody, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also claims Beasley was repeatedly punished for behaviors driven by his disability, which created a self-perpetuating cycle.
The lawsuit said Beasley was sent from the juvenile to the adult system less than a month after his 16th birthday in September of 2022, despite a continuous pattern of self-harm and mental health needs which were in 1,000 pages of suicide risk assessments performed during the almost five years Beasley was in custody.
A judge in 2022 ruled that Beasley should serve an additional five-year sentence in Texas’ adult prison system after he was charged with harassment and assault on a juvenile staff member.
Beasley’s mother fought to keep her son from being transferred but was ultimately moved to the TDCJ’s Wayne Scott Unit, an adult male prison in Brazoria County.
The suit alleges that the TDCJ, TJJD, and the University of Texas Medical Branch staff and officials violated the eighth amendment, which limits the types and amounts of punishments the criminal justice system can impose and that the departments violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, ultimately leading to Joshua’s death.
“The carceral system is no place for any child, much less a child like Joshua with complex mental health needs,” said Molly Petchenik, Staff Attorney for the Criminal Legal Program at the Texas Civil Rights Project. “Locking kids up only compounds their mental health struggles.”
A years-long investigation by the United States Department of Justice recently detailed constitutional and other violations at each of the TJJD’s five facilities.
The Department of Justice reported in August that the Texas juvenile system failed to keep children safe from harm — including exposure to sexual abuse, excessive use of physical force and isolation, and an inadequate behavior management system.
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