Until the end, their lives were different in countless ways. Jeffrey Epstein, 66, a wealthy white financier with many powerful friends and clients, was a previously convicted sex offender who was facing a new indictment on sex-trafficking charges when he died by suicide early yesterday in the federal Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in New York City.
Sandra Bland, a 28-year-old African American woman, was driving to a new job in Texas in July 2015 when a state trooper pulled her over for failing to signal a lane change. Incredibly, the trooper transported Bland to the Waller County jail. Three days later, a jail officer found her hanging from a plastic garbage-can liner tied to a post in her cell. She had not been seen by any jail staff for more than 90 minutes.
Both cases led to a nationwide furor, as incredulous commentators searched for explanations. On social media yesterday, many people speculated, without evidence, about who besides Epstein might be responsible for his death. Tellingly, many criminal-justice experts pointed instead to a broader issue: Suicide has been a lingering problem in detention facilities, and systemic factors—such as inattention, understaffing, or inadequate training—generally offer a simpler explanation for a prisoner's death than nefarious intent.
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