SLO County Jail enters agreement with feds, monitor required

January 17, 2025

By KAREN VELIE

The San Luis Obispo County Jail and the Justice Department reached an agreement on Thursday, requiring improvements and a monitor to resolve the DOJ’s findings at the jail that violate the Eighth and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The agreement also recognizes and outlines the significant strides the county has made in some areas since the findings were issued.

Under the agreement, the jail will, among other things:

• Take steps to protect incarcerated people at risk of suicide;
• Stop housing people with serious mental illness in isolation absent specific and significant protections;
• Require any use of force by staff comply with constitutional standards; and
• Implement a quality assurance program to identify and correct systemic deficiencies.

The agreement also requires the appointment of a lead expert to assess the county’s compliance with the agreement and provide technical assistance and recommendations to facilitate compliance. The monitor will issue public reports every six months on the county’s compliance with the agreement.

“Neither the county nor the United States, or any of their staff or agents, will have
any supervisory authority over the lead expert’s activities, reports, findings, or
recommendations to implement the agreement,” according to the agreement.

In Jan. 2017, the county violated multiple rules and regulations in the treatment of Andrew Holland, a mentally ill man who died after being strapped in a restraint chair for two days in the SLO County Jail.

More than a year after the FBI mounted a criminal investigation into alleged civil rights abuses of inmates at the jail following Holland’s death, in 2018, the Department of Justice opened an investigation into how the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office is complying with federal laws.

On June 23, 2021, SLO County agreed to pay a former inmate $175,000 and to correct violations of the American’s with Disabilities Act that led the inmate to suffer a broken leg, according to an agreement between the United States and SLO County. Instead of allowing the inmate a disabled shower or the use of a prosthetic, the inmate was told to hop to the shower, causing him to slip and crush the remaining portion of his leg.

According to the agreement, the county was required to provide a litany of items for 24 months including, ADA compliant housing, self-propelled wheelchairs and the ability to participate in activities at the jail.

However, in 2023, a 64-year-old disabled inmate contacted the Department of Justice to allege he was neglected and mistreated while incarcerated in the San Luis Obispo County Jail for nine days.

Even though the the county was then required to sign another agreement, the Department of Justice praised the SLO County Sheriff’s Office for its many improvements.

“We are encouraged by the improvements the San Luis Obispo County Jail has made since we announced our investigation, but there is still more that must be done to achieve constitutional compliance,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This agreement includes strong remedial provisions that, if fully implemented, should improve suicide prevention, reduce excessive force, and reduce the use of unnecessary isolation.”

Failure to comply to the agreement leaves the county open to a federal takeover of the jail along with fines and other penalties.

The 2025 agreement will terminate in five years, or earlier, if the county has attained substantial compliance and maintained that compliance for at least a year.

“We are pleased with the settlement agreement, as it not only highlights the significant advancements we’ve achieved over the years but also underscores the progress we are committed to maintaining,” according to the SLO County Sheriff’s Department.

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