The ACLU of Hawaii is calling for an independent review of suicides in state prisons and jails following the recent suicide of an inmate at Halawa Correctional Facility. Justin Feliciano, 33, was discovered unresponsive in his cell and could not be revived. This marks the fifth suicide in Hawaii’s correctional system this year, prompting concerns about the state’s failure to provide mental health services to incarcerated individuals. Data shows an increase in suicides in Hawaii’s correctional system in recent years, with at least 13 known or suspected suicides from 2020 to 2024. The ACLU is urging for an assessment of what could have been done to prevent these deaths and is pushing for suicides to be a standing item on the Hawaii Correctional System Oversight Commission’s monthly agendas. Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Director Tommy Johnson noted that prisons and jails have become de facto mental health institutions due to the closure of mental health facilities across the country. The recent death at Halawa is under investigation by the state Department of Law Enforcement and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Overall, there is a growing concern about the increase in suicides in correctional facilities, with a study showing an 85% increase in state prison suicides from 2001 to 2019.
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Another Inmate Found Dead in Apparent Suicide at Hawaii’s Largest Prison
