A Fort Worth family is calling for change at the Tarrant County Jail after their loved one died in custody on Sunday.
The Tarrant County Sherriff’s Office said 31-year-old Anthony Johnson died after being pepper sprayed during a confrontation with officers in his cell Sunday morning.
Johnson is the second inmate to die at the jail in less than a week, and the fifth inmate to die this year. More than 60 inmates have died at the Tarrant County Jail since 2017.
In an emotional interview Monday, Johnson’s family told NBC 5 those numbers were unacceptable and they’re still searching for answers about what led to his death.
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Chanell and Janell Johnson said their brother Anthony, known as AJ, was an inspiration. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, the sisters said he was intelligent, loving, and motivated.
“He had a really soft soul, could light up a room and make you smile,” said Chanell Johnson.
AJ's family said he had schizophrenia. He was arrested on Friday by Saginaw police, who said he was standing in the street and waving a knife at drivers.
Johnson was charged with possession of a controlled substance and evading arrest, and booked into the Tarrant County Jail.
On Sunday morning, the family got a knock on their door. Janell said it was a chaplain and two sheriff's deputies who came with the news that their brother had died at John Peter Smith Hospital.
The family told NBC 5 that the sheriff’s office couldn’t tell them what led up to Johnson’s death, only that he had died and the Texas Rangers were investigating, which could take up to four months.
“We’re told we can’t even see him,” said Chanell Johnson. “And it’s just like, when you get told someone dies, how do we know it’s real?”
“Can we go see his body? Can we make sure that you have the right identity?” she continued. “That we’re talking about the right person here?”
Later that night, the family saw a news report with a release from investigators: the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office said Johnson refused to leave his cell for a contraband check, and during a confrontation with officers he was pepper sprayed, leading to a medical emergency.
“What’s the medical emergency, pepper spray?” said Janell Johnson. “And why can’t they say what it was?”
Johnson was the second inmate at the jail to die in custody in four days.
His family said Johnson tried to seek inpatient medical treatment for schizophrenia in recent months, but providers wouldn’t take him in and he was eventually arrested during a manic episode.
“If this is the procedure, you guys have got to change it,” Janell Johnson said. “Because it’s killing people.”
More than 60 Tarrant County inmates have now died since 2017, causing concern among some county leaders and advocates.
Johnson’s family said to honor his memory, they plan to fight to bring attention to those deaths.
“This is the last death, it should be and better be the last death that they ever have,” Janell Johnson said. “Because that’s not right.”
NBC 5 reached out to the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office for a response to the family’s concerns about what led up to Johnson’s death.
TCSO referred us to the Texas Rangers for any comments on this case.
We also asked TCSO for a response to concerns about deaths among the Tarrant County Jail inmate population in recent years, what the sheriff’s office believed has contributed to that total, and what measures are in place to mitigate inmate deaths.
The sheriff’s office said it’s working on a response to those questions. A news conference is being planned for 3:30 p.m. Thursday.
Tarrant County Commissioner Alisa Simmons sent out a statement Monday night:
"We have people dying in our jail at rates that are unacceptable. Two deaths within a four-day period; five total deaths in 3.5 months amount to an incredibly high rate. Being accused of a crime and going to the county jail should not be a death sentence under any circumstance. I will be asking the United States Department of Justice to investigate the continual problem of people dying in Tarrant County jail facilities. Hopefully, my colleagues on commissioners court are as interested as I to mitigate these occurrences and will be amenable to seeking a Justice Department review. Regarding the Sunday April 21, 2024, jail death of Mr. Anthony Ray Johnson Jr., there are more questions than answers therefore I am unable to provide details because there has not been an investigation. I want accountability, I expect transparency and I want a full investigation into everything that occurred, before, during and after the altercation and the subsequent death of Mr. Johnson in our jail, including video footage. Despite the commissioner's court’s spending of taxpayer dollars to provide each and every tool, consultant contract, private jail facility agreement, tank, trainings and travel requested by the Sherriff, these inexcusable deaths continue. At this point, we need federal intervention."
