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WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2015 VOL. 48, NO. 25 75¢ islandssounder.com
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‘Systemic failures’ led to inmate’s death Lopez Island man dies from dehydration in Island County Jail; investigation shows negligence by deputies and administration by JESSIE STENSLAND
Contributed photo
Whidbey News-Times Co-editor
“Catastrophic systemic failures” at the Island County Jail led to a 25-year-old man’s death from dehydration April 8, Island County Sheriff Mark Brown said. An exhaustive investigation by Detective Ed Wallace offers an unblinking look at how negligence and errors by both corrections deputies and jail administration contributed to Keaton Farris’ tragic death. The report was released June 18. Two corrections deputies who falsified logs were placed on administrative leave and have since resigned. Lt. Pam McCarthy was placed on paid administrative leave pending a disciplinary review. Chief De Dennis, the jail administrator, was suspended for 30 days without pay and his continued employment is uncertain, Brown said. Farris’ father, Coupeville postman Fred Farris, said he is struggling to understand how this could have happened. He is filled with grief, anger and disbelief. “It’s not OK,” he said. “What happened is unconscionable.” Fred Farris and his family
Left: Keaton Farris died on April 8.
entrusted the jail employees to care for his son, who lived on Lopez Island. He is agonizing over his decision not to bail out his son; people convinced him that the young man would be safer in jail since he was dealing with a mental health issue.
The family organized a peaceful protest on Father’s Day as a way of sending a message to the jail and sheriff ’s office. More than 250 people in black shirts, many holding signs, quietly marched through Coupeville to the Island County Jail, where they held hands and
formed a human chain encircling the facility. The goal, Fred Farris said, is to ensure that such a needless tragedy never happens again. Island County Coroner Robert Bishop reported that Farris died from dehydration, but malnutri-
Senior center continues to grow by COLLEEN SMITH ARMSTRONG Editor/Publisher
For a group of islanders, the weekly meals at Orcas Senior Center offer sustenance for the body and the heart. “The meal program hosted here at the Orcas Senior Center is a successful collaboration between Meals on Wheels and More, San Juan County and our own Senior Center Operations Committee,” said Jami Mitchell, manager of the Orcas Senior Center. “We all work together to serve Orcas seniors nutritious meals in a community setting and deliver to folks who are home-bound.” It’s an opportunity for the elder members of the Orcas community to socialize with one another. Sometimes there is live music or a guest speaker. And for those who cannot leave their homes,
it’s one way to ensure they’ll be fed. In 2014, a total of 8,800 meals were provided. Thanks to a Orcas Island Community Foundation Grant, the senior center is now adding a third weekly food offering. “This is a major shift here as the meals are one of our most utilized services,” Mitchell said. Starting July 6, lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The cost is $5 for 60 and older and $6 for people under 60. Mitchell says they are in need of volunteers to help bus the tables and clean the dining room. Contact her at 376-7929 or orcasseniorcenter@gmail.com.
Facility improvements For many senior center patrons, it is difficult
getting walkers across the gravel parking lot or driving over the many potholes. San Juan County is helping pay for new asphalt to improve the accessible parking areas at each end of the building, and to chip seal the main parking lot. The paving should be done this week, and the chip sealing will happen in July. The nonprofit that runs the Senior Center is expected to contribute $12,000 towards those expenses, and needs another $3,000 to repair Henry Road, which is the road access to the building. “We appreciate the collaboration between the government and the nonprofit for the betterment of this facility,” Mitchell said. “For our part, however, we need to fundraise $15,000 to make these road repairs and parking lot
SEE SENIORS, PAGE 5
tion was a contributing factor. Farris was suffering from mental health issues and had been both combative and non-responsive with jail staff in three different counties, Wallace’s report indicates. The 51-page report outlines a complicated series of missteps. The water to Farris’ cell in the Island County Jail was turned off for days because he put a pillow in the toilet at one point and later flooded his cell. He was given water during his meals but it was only a fraction of what was necessary to survive. The staff did not check on him as often as protocol dictated. The logs didn’t include necessary information and observations. Medical staff wasn’t called to examine Farris until the day before he died and the nurse didn’t relate any concerns to jail staff. “Once the nurse was notified she failed to do a proper evaluation of his condition even after Farris advised her that he was not doing well,” Wallace wrote. The detective figured out that
SEE KEATON, PAGE 6
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