NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Beth York was Christmas shopping for her daughter when the jail called to say she had died.
"I got the phone call, and I was a mess. I was like there is no way this could have happened in a controlled environment," York said.
Her daughter, Jacqueline, 25, died after hanging herself in the Davidson County jail. She had suffered from mental health issues for years.
"I lost my best friend. It's been just horrible," York said.
York is now suing the medical provider inside the Davidson County jail, Wellpath, as well as the Metropolitan Government of Nashville.
The lawsuit claims Metro "knew or should have known that Wellpath is notorious for providing inadequate care to inmates."
It cites "reports, investigations, and hundreds of lawsuits" filed against the company across the country.
It states Wellpath "has a business practice of maximizing profits at the expense of the well-being of patients," and it "failed to comply with the applicable standard of care" in Jacqueline York's case.
Jacqueline was arrested in October 2020 during the pandemic, after she went into a gas station with a knife and said, "I have a weapon and I need money."
She did not harm anyone and waited for police to arrive to arrest her.
"It was through COVID, and she ... I guess everybody being isolated, she was struggling," York said.
In jail, her mental health issues worsened.
Medical records cited in the lawsuit show the jail and its medical provider, Wellpath, were well aware of her mental health history, and that she was placed on suicide watch several times.
She was released from jail but later re-arrested on a probation violation.
On Dec. 19, 2022, two days before she died, York attempted suicide by hanging herself with a bed sheet, according to the lawsuit.
It claims inmates alerted corrections officers but they "took no action" and "failed to report it."
Two days later, on the day she died, York urgently requested mental health care because she was hearing voices "screaming inside her head," and she said her medication needed to be adjusted, according to the lawsuit.
But instead of seeing a doctor, "Wellpath chose to allow a social worker to treat her," according to the lawsuit.
Attorney Ben Raybin said York needed to see a qualified medical professional.
He said the social worker simply sent Jacqueline back to her cell — with no oversight, where she again used her bed sheet to hang herself.
"In an attempt to cut costs Wellpath had somebody that wasn't qualified to provide the services that were clearly needed," Raybin said.
"At facilities all over the country Wellpath is failing to provide the care that is required to be given inmates," Raybin said.
Last year, six United States Senators sent a letter to Wellpath citing "inadequate staffing," hiring "under-qualified medical professionals" and "inadequate mental health care" as areas of "deep concern."
"My daughter cried out for help when she was in jail," York said. "They did not help and they did not protect her."
York cannot believe a social worker sent her daughter back to her cell — unsupervised, with access to a bed sheet.
"If they had put my daughter on suicide watch, I would still have my daughter today, and that is the truth," York said.
The lawsuit also claims the "highest ranking (corrections) officer in the jail" "covered up" the suicide attempt on Dec. 19, by failing to report it.
"The cover-up by the sheriff's office or at least by that employee, is extremely concerning and at least a factor leading up to Jackie's death," Raybin said.
The sheriff's office later sanctioned the officer for "unsatisfactory" job performance after he agreed he should have reported York's attempted suicide. The officer was not sanctioned for dishonesty, according to a sheriff's office letter from April of 2023.
York said her daughter deserved better, and so do the many others dealing with mental illness. She said she filed this lawsuit to force change.
"If somebody would have done this for us, maybe my daughter would still be alive," York said.
The Davidson County Sheriff's Office declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Wellpath did not return requests for comment.
Tennessee is in a mental health crisis.
In acknowledging that reality, Ben Hall has been investigating what that means for everyone across the state.
Some of those stories have meant him recording stories involving jails, psychiatric hospitals, emergency rooms and the court system.
You can catch up on those stories at on our NewsChannel 5 Investigates page or by pressing this link.
