COUPEVILLE — Keaton Farris was the second person to die in the Island County Jail in 18 months and the third in nine years.
Critics have pointed to the other deaths, particularly that of Gregory McBride in early 2014, as evidence of ongoing and widespread problems at the jail.
Law-and-justice officials, however, are quick to distinguish between the cases.
No problems with jail operations or policies were identified following McBride’s death, according to Undersheriff Kelly Mauck.
That’s in stark contrast to a detective’s recent report on Farris’ April 7 death, which described a long series of institutional and staff failures in the days before he succumbed to dehydration.
McBride, 56, died en route to Whidbey General Hospital from the jail Jan. 26, 2014, according to Island County Coroner Robert Bishop. McBride was being held in jail for driving without a license.
Bishop initially ruled the death was natural and caused by cirrhosis. He changed the findings after the toxicology report came back.
The tests showed “acute methamphetamine intoxication,” he said. As a result, the cause of death for McBride was amended to cirrhosis of the liver with meth intoxication as a significant contributing factor. He changed the manner of death from natural to accidental.
Bishop, who ruled that Farris died from dehydration, sees no tie to the McBride case beyond the place of death and that both men needed medical help.
McBride had a life-long battle with substance abuse and serious ongoing medical conditions. He reported that he used heroin prior to going to jail.
Bishop believes there are three ways McBride could have wound up with meth in his body after four days in jail.
He could have had it in his system before coming to the jail and his failing liver was unable to remove the drug. He could have smuggled it into the jail with him and used it there. Or he could have obtained and used the meth after being jailed, according to the coroner.
McBride was held in a solitary room, so Bishop believes it is unlikely the man obtained meth from someone else in the jail.
The man had appeared in Island County District Court Jan. 22, 2014, on the driving with license suspended case and another case in which a warrant had been issued.
Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks said it is unusual for deputy prosecutors to request bail on a suspended-license charge but McBride had a history of failing to show up for court dates. His bail was set at $10,000.
Mauck said jail staff followed policies and checked on McBride regularly because he had fallen sick. He was screened by a nurse within two hours of being booked and placed in a cell by himself.
Jail staff found him unresponsive in his cell and he died before arriving at the hospital.
The other death, in July 2006, involved a man who had been arrested for driving over a deputy’s toes. Stephen Peters, 57, of Freeland, was in a padded cell when he died from cardiac arrhythmia. Peters had a bad heart and a bad liver from chronic alcoholism, the coroner said.
Banks is reviewing the circumstances of Farris’ dehydration death to determine whether criminal charges are warranted. The Island County Sheriff’s Office internal investigation determined corrections deputies hadn’t been checking on Farris as required and later falsified logs to make it appear as if they’d performed as expected.
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