JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Following Tuesday’s announcement of a local defense attorney being arrested – accused of passing drugs to inmates in the Duval County jail - one family in the process of suing JSO is speaking out.
Kiara Lapearl Reid died last February in the Duval County Jail. Her family hired an attorney who watched Tuesday’s news conference closely as JSO announced they arrested a lawyer named Nathan Williams for passing drug-soaked papers to inmates.
“I think it just bolsters our argument that there is a systemic problem inside the jail,” said Belkis Plata, the family’s attorney. “They are not protecting their inmates by allowing contraband to come into the jail. ”
JSO says the drugs Williams passed were a form of synthetic marijuana but Plata said Lapearl Reid died of fentanyl overdose.
While not directly related, the two cases involve drugs entering the Duval County Jail, which Lapearl Reid’s family says is concerning. Plata echoed the sentiment, saying it all amounts to more proof of systemic failure within Duval County’s penitentiaries.
Plata adds that she’s not certain at this point if they’ll amend their lawsuit based on the recent accusations.
“We’re still collecting information,” she said. “I don’t have access to review what exactly is in there, but if anything comes out that affects our lawsuit we will be prepared to amend it.”
JSO and the City of Jacksonville have declined to comment on the lawsuit because their policy prevents them from commenting on pending litigation.
However, they did tell News4JAX that overdose deaths in the jail have dropped considerably since they instituted a new policy that doesn’t allow paperwork to be given to inmates. Instead, the policy requires that the original document be photocopied and then discarded.
“Operation Stamp Collection achieved the result of lowering drug overdoses and protecting inmates from dangerous narcotics,” said Shawn Coarsey, an undersheriff with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. “In 2023, before the operation was in place, there were 23 overdoses in jail, meanwhile, in 2024, after the operation commenced, the number dropped to nine.”