A Lawrence County Jail inmate attempted to hang himself Wednesday, but sheriff’s deputies were able to rescue him in time.

Thursday, October 07, 1999

A Lawrence County Jail inmate attempted to hang himself Wednesday, but sheriff’s deputies were able to rescue him in time.

The attempted suicide occurred at about 2:30 p.m., Sheriff Roy Smith said.

Sheriff’s department officials would not release the man’s name or criminal record, but did say he was serving time for a felony charge.

Fellow inmates alerted deputies to a disturbance in the jail, and also assisted in getting the man down, Smith said.

"There were three officers back there," he said. "I guess the inmates yelled. As soon as we got the report, we got him down and out of there. We called the squad and they took him to the hospital."

The man was transported to River Valley Health System by Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Service technicians.

This is not the first attempted suicide jail officials have had to deal with, Smith added.

"There’s been quite a few attempted hangings in jails like this," he said. "But if we know they are a possible suicide risk we put them on a 10-minute watch, where jailers would continue to walk by to make sure they weren’t banging their heads, hanging themselves"

The man was able to try to hang himself by wrapping a sheet around his neck and around the bars, Smith said.

"Sheets are one of those things we’ve tried not to give the prisoners, but the state said we have to give them linens," he said.

The inmate left the jail in a conscious state, Smith said.