34-year-old Rayes Chaires Jr. died on June 6, and 57-year-old Elizabeth Nero died on June 4. Both died within a week of being booked into jail. Officials say wi
Bexar County officials are warning that longstanding problems at the county jail could worsen after Laurel Ridge Treatment Center announced plans to lay off more than 600 workers, a move expected to reduce available mental health beds and potentially push more people into the jail system.
34-year-old Reyes Chaires Jr. died on June 6, and 57-year-old Elizabeth Nero died on June 4. Both died within a week of being booked into jail. Officials say withdrawals may have played a role. Casandra Pearson’s family says they are concerned egregious medical negligence caused her death on May 18.
They say she suffered from sickle cell anemia. All three are among the six people who have died in custody since the beginning of the year. Still, the voices of families who lost loved ones continue to call for change in the system years later.
“Mental health needs ignored or mishandled, inadequate medical care, preventable deaths followed by silence,” said Lidia Layos, mother of Julian Dena, who died in custody from drug poisoning, during the April 28 Bexar County Commissioners Court meeting. The organization wrote in its 2026 report: “In the past five years, the number of deaths in Bexar County have almost matched Harris County despite the jail population being roughly half of Harris County’s.
” “The sheriff unfortunately gets the blame for everything that happens in that jail,” said Ron Tooke, president of the Deputy Sheriffs Association of Bexar County. Tooke says that although medical aid is available in the jail, University Health medical professionals are responsible for screening inmates to determine whether they need to be diverted to a hospital where they can receive more specialized care for issues such as withdrawal.
In 2024, we reported more inmates were being diverted, and deaths have gone down slightly since then but took says jail overcrowding doesn't help those who do go to the hospital.
“There’s just so many people inside that jail and not enough staff members yet, and everybody is addressing that problem,” said Ron Tooke. We are still waiting for confirmation on exactly how these two latest inmates died. We have also reached out to University Health to find out whether they are stepping up screening efforts to send people who need additional care to the hospital.
'F*ck you, cracker': Racist insults hurled outside courthouse during Karmelo Anthony trial Tense confrontations outside a courthouse in Texas have escalated during a murder trial following the deadly stabbing of a 17-year-old boy. San Antonio police are searching for a suspect after a Far West Side shooting left a pickup driver hospitalized with a head wound. The victim was found near Culebra and Roft roads, alert but in critical condition.
TPUSA defended its Women’s Leadership Summit in San Antonio after protesters gathered outside the Marriott Rivercenter, calling it proof of influence. Police and organizers didn’t comment on arrests or security. San Antonio police and EMS found a man in his 20s to 30s with a gunshot wound near Vance Jackson Rd and Denton Dr around 12:50 a.m. Saturday. He later died as investigators work to piece together what happened.
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