Antonio Thomas
Antonio Thomas was a 39-year-old father of two who had lived with mental illness for much of his life. His family said he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia and had usually been housed in a medical unit when jailed before. In December 2019 he was held at the Sacramento County Main Jail, where, according to his family's attorney, Mark Merin, another man in his cell beat him. He lay in a coma for 42 days at UC Davis Medical Center, and after his parents allowed doctors to remove life support, he died. The family's attorney says jail staff failed to classify him properly, ignored warnings about his cell placement, and did not respond quickly enough to the attack, while the sheriff's office said no policy violations were found and the county agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle the family's claims.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed; neglect alleged). Mark Merin, the family's attorney, says a cellmate beat him and jailers ignored warnings about his cell placement and responded too slowly to emergency calls, while the Sheriff's Office says no policy violations were found.
Reported by: Mark Merin, the family's civil rights attorney (family or their lawyers); Black Lives Matter Sacramento (advocates).
Lawsuit: His family sued Sacramento County and the county agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle, according to reporting from the family's attorney, Mark Merin.