Suicide remains the leading cause of death in American jails. Yet many custodial suicides follow recognizable patterns and occur in the presence of preventable system failures.
In When No One Is Watching, correctional psychiatrist and suicide expert Anasseril E. Daniel, MD, draws upon 25 years of correctional experience, more than 200 suicide reviews, and over 100 correctional cases to examine why inmates die by suicide and what institutions can do to prevent it.
What distinguishes this book is its case law-based training approach. Rather than relying solely on theory, Dr. Daniel uses actual litigation, court decisions, mortality reviews, and real-world correctional experience to demonstrate how clinical, operational, and administrative failures lead to tragedy, and how they can be prevented.
The book offers practical guidance for correctional administrators, mental health professionals, medical staff, attorneys, risk managers, and policymakers.
Topics include vulnerable inmate populations, suicide screening and risk assessment, monitoring and supervision failures, solitary confinement, non-suicidal self-injury, environmental hazards and ligature risks, emergency response, and the litigation lessons and risk management strategies drawn from real cases.
“Every custodial suicide is a human tragedy. Many are also preventable.” -Anasseril E. Daniel, MD
Through its unique integration of clinical practice, correctional operations, and case law, When No One Is Watching serves as both a suicide-prevention guide and a training resource for professionals responsible for inmate safety.
Dr. Daniel is also the author of Suicide in Jails and Prisons: Preventive and Legal Perspectives (2022) and has published widely in the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law and the Journal of Correctional Health Care.
When No One Is Watching: Preventing Suicide and Avoiding Lawsuits is available now through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other major booksellers via the IngramSpark distribution network, as well as at www.prisonsuicideexpert.com.
Media Contact:
Anasseril E. Daniel, MD
Forensic Psychiatrist, Correctional Suicide Expert, Author
anasserildaniel@gmail.com
www.prisonsuicideexpert.org
