Candice Wheat
Candice Wheat was a mother of three from southern Indiana, and her sister Sherry Clifford describes a woman who had battled depression and had recently started seeing a therapist. On May 12, 2019, she was placed in a holding cell at the Clark County Jail in Jeffersonville after a traffic stop, where the family says she had told an arresting officer she wanted to kill herself. The family's lawsuit says she was not placed on suicide watch and was given a suicide smock, and that about two hours later she was found in her cell with a string around her neck. The Clark County Sheriff's Office has said she died by suicide, and her family, who settled a lawsuit for $500,000, says the death could have been prevented.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed; neglect alleged). The sheriff's office and IndyStar report she hanged herself with a string; her family's lawsuit says she told an arresting officer she wanted to kill herself, but jail staff did not place her on suicide watch and gave her a suicide smock.
Reported by: Clark County Sheriff's Office (the agency that held her); IndyStar investigation (reporters); family lawsuit.
Lawsuit: Her family sued Clark County and settled the lawsuit for $500,000 over her death at the Clark County Jail.