Monica J. Johnson
Monica Jean Johnson, 38, was held at the Hancock County Jail in Ellsworth, Maine. Sheriff Scott Kane said she attempted suicide there on September 29, 2018, and was taken to a Bangor hospital, where she died on October 4, 2018 after being taken off life support. Maine State Police investigated, and the sheriff declined to release further details. Her husband, Stewart H. Carney Jr., said she had depression and anxiety, had suffered a traumatic brain injury about 18 months before, and had been hospitalized for mental illness before, and he says she urgently asked to see a psychiatrist while at the jail. A federal lawsuit by her husband and her estate alleges inadequate mental health care and inadequate staff training and supervision; the defendants have denied the allegations.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (neglect alleged). Sheriff Scott Kane said Johnson attempted suicide at the Hancock County Jail and died after being taken off life support, while her husband and estate's federal lawsuit says jail staff and health providers failed to provide adequate mental health care and to train and supervise staff.
Reported by: Hancock County Sheriff Scott Kane (the agency that held her); Stewart H. Carney Jr. and an attorney for her estate, in a federal civil lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: Her husband and estate sued Hancock County, Sheriff Scott Kane, jail staff and jail health providers in federal court, alleging inadequate mental health care and training; the defendants have denied the allegations and the case could go to trial.