Jeffrey Epstein Board

[MiamiGent]

A psychiatrist who's worked with inmates where Jeffrey Epstein was held weighs in on his death
Lauren Frias Aug. 24, 2019, 9:22 AM BUSINESS INSIDER

The Justice Department confirmed in a letter to lawmakers Friday that a "doctoral-level psychologist" signed off on taking criminal financier Jeffrey Epstein off suicide watch.

Forensic psychiatrist Ziv Cohen, who has been evaluating inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center where Epstein was held, weighed in on the matter in an interview with Insider.

Cohen said he thinks that "at MCC, they're well aware that suicide is a serious problem, and they're well aware that this is something they are trying to address on a daily basis."

However, he also said that Epstein's case "seems to be a question of whether something went wrong in their ability to address the situation."

The Justice Department confirmed in a letter to lawmakers Friday that a "doctoral-level psychologist" signed off on taking criminal financier Jeffrey Epstein off suicide watch on July 29. A little under two weeks later, he was found dead in his cell on August 10.

According to the letter, the psychologist deemed constant observation as "no longer warranted" for Epstein, despite being on suicide watch less than a week before.

"The Department and the Bureau take seriously the responsibility to ensure the safety and security of all inmates in the custody of the Bureau," the letter stated.

Forensic psychiatrist Ziv Cohen has been evaluating inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, the high-security prison where Epstein was held, for about ten years, he told Insider. Although the Justice Department affirmed that a "doctoral-level" psychologist cleared Epstein, a psychiatrist is needed to meet the regular standard of care in a prison.

"The psychiatric standard of care requires that a doctoral level clinician make the decision to remove an inmate from suicide watch. Ideally, this would be a psychiatrist," Cohen wrote in an email. "If a psychologist were to make the decision, it should be in consultation with a psychiatrist, given the serious consequences of this decision."
Cohen, who previously worked on a case involving suicide in prison, believes Epstein's estate has a case against MCC

In his time as a forensic psychiatrist, he served as an expert witness on a case related to the psychiatric standard of care in order to prevent suicide in prison. The plaintiff was a veteran who was imprisoned for driving while under the influence and later died by suicide on his second day of incarceration after a psychiatrist determined that he was not a danger to himself.
In the case, Cohen said that it was "almost certain" that the plaintiff would be in opioid withdrawal when he was assessed by the psychiatrist, putting him at "higher risk of committing suicide," thus not meeting the standard of care required for him.

The same idea could be echoed in Epstein's case, after the change in lifestyle for the disgraced financier could have been a trigger for suicide — going from his high-life as a multi-millionaire to an inmate in a federal prison, Cohen said.

Last week, Epstein's defense team blasted the "medieval conditions" of the federal prison and announced that they are launching their own investigation into their employer's death. However, it does pose a problem that Epstein's case may not appeal to the masses.
"Part of the problem for them, I think, is that Epstein doesn't cut a very sympathetic figure, and in the criminal justice system, that matters," Cohen said. "If the system plays itself out in front of people, whether they're jurors or judges, these are people."
However, the forensic psychiatrist added that, "if you look at it dispassionately, you do have to acknowledge that no one should die in jail."
https://www.businessinsider.com/jeffrey-epstein-suicide-death-poll-2019-8c