220 inmates died in Ohio’s prisons in 4 years

Over a year ago, we set out to find out who was dying in Ohio’s prisons and why these deaths were occurring.

The Cincinnati Enquirer, the Columbus Dispatch and USA TODAY Network Ohio reviewed complaints, inspection reports, autopsies, obituaries, investigative documents, surveillance videos and other records related to what happened in Ohio’s prisons.

We interviewed more than 40 sheriffs, state officials, politicians, criminal justice experts, inmates and their families. We toured several prisons and made more than 135 records requests.

The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction provided copies of inspection reports, prison standards and a table of reported deaths. We tracked down coroner reports for nearly all 219 deaths reported to the state between January 2020 and December 2023.

The investigation took more than a year, largely due to delays in submitting public records, with some counties not providing jail surveillance footage until several months after we received our requests and only after our legal team asked for it.

It has also taken time to gain the trust of those who have lost loved ones behind bars. Many have spoken out, demanding changes in prison operations so that other families do not have to suffer the same pain as they did.

(Reporters from USA TODAY’s Ohio newspaper network spent a year investigating deaths in the state’s prison system. Consider supporting their work with a subscription. )

Dying behind bars: At least 220 people died in Ohio prisons within 4 years

Across Ohio, people are dying in local jails. Suicides, drug overdoses, withdrawals and medical problems claim an average of one life each week.

Why does this happen so often?

Read the full story.

Who dies behind bars in Ohio’s prisons?

Every year, dozens of Ohioans die in local prisons, losing their lives to suicide, drug overdoses, medical neglect, violence, accidents, or other causes.

One man choked on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Another was strangled. Two inmates beat a man unconscious with vicious blows. In other cases, inmates or prison guards administered opioids that caused fatal overdoses.

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Ohio’s prisons house about 300,000 people each year. How does the system work?

On any given night, Ohio’s 89 prisons hold about 16,500 people, and prison guards detain about 300,000 people each year – some of whom are incarcerated multiple times.

Prisons are not the same as detention centers. They are temporary holding facilities for people who have just been arrested, are awaiting court appearances, are on bail, or are serving short-term prison sentences.

Most of Ohio’s 89 full-service jails are operated by elected county sheriffs. A few are operated by a regional board or municipal police department.

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Two people were taken to prisons in Ohio just a few miles apart. One was treated. The other died

For people who are arrested and put in prison, the difference between life and death can be just a matter of miles and county lines.

Ohio has 181 standards for full-service prisons designed to ensure a minimum level of care for inmates across the state. But a lack of enforcement and respect for local control mean that conditions and treatment in a county jail ultimately depend on the priorities of the county sheriff.

For example, there is a large gap between the approaches of the Butler County Corrections Center and the Hamilton County Justice Center, even though the two counties are located next to each other.

Read the full story.

Ohio’s prisons have long been de facto psychiatric hospitals. Now they look like this

Jails are overcrowded with people struggling with drug addiction, mental illness and poor health. How are sheriffs dealing with these challenges?

Read the full story.

Ohio Politics Explained

Check back on Monday for a special podcast in our Death Behind Bars series.

Our team

Reporters Laura Bischoff and Erin Glynn of the USA TODAY Network’s Ohio bureau moderated the reporting and writing. Bureau Chief Anthony Shoemaker, Cincinnati Enquirer reporter Dan Horn and Cincinnati Enquirer senior news director Jackie Borchardt edited the stories.

Cincinnati Enquirer cinematographer Cara Owsley, Columbus Dispatch photographers Courtney Hergesheimer, Doral Chenoweth and Brooke LaValley, and Enquirer photographers Albert Cesear, Phil Didion, Liz Dufour and Kareem Elgazzar shot photos and video. Enquirer visual journalist Mike Nygeres created graphics and an animated video. Dan Kadar and Keely Brown directed the digital presentation. Jason Bredehoeft designed the pages of today’s edition.

This article originally appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer: Why have 220 inmates died in Ohio’s prisons in four years?