Erika Rocha
Erika Rocha was 35. Her sister Geraldine said she needed somebody there for her, and her stepmother recalled her excitement about what lay ahead and her wish to be pushed on a swing and rolled in the grass. Erika Rocha died by suicide on April 14, 2016, hanging herself in her cell at the California Institution for Women in San Bernardino County, a day after she was moved off suicide watch into a mental health unit, according to WitnessLA. Her family's lawsuit says she had a long history of mental health struggles and that prison staff did not check on her for more than two hours, and the state agreed to a $1,501,500 settlement without admitting liability. Advocates with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners say her death was preventable and point to chronic suicide prevention problems at the facility.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed; neglect alleged). Her family's lawsuit says prison staff failed to provide adequate suicide prevention care and did not check on her for more than two hours, and advocates say prevention failures were a concern; the state settled without admitting liability.
Reported by: California Institution for Women (the agency that held her); WitnessLA (reporters); Rocha family's lawyer Lori Rifkin (family or their lawyers); Erika Rocha's sister Geraldine (family or their lawyers); advocates with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners (advocates); advocate Colby Lenz (advocates).
Lawsuit: Her family sued over her death, and the state agreed to a $1,501,500 settlement without admitting liability.
News reports (4)
- Erika Rocha’s Suicide Underscores the Damage That Prison Is Wreaking on Youth
- NO SAFE PLACE: A Troubling Suicide at a California Women’s Prison & a Report Pointing to Chronic Failures in the Facility’s Suicide Prevention Practices |
- 'The system failed her': behind a suicide spike at a California women's prison
- Inmate killed herself one day before parole hearing. Now California will pay $1.5 million