SAN JOSE, Calif. (CN) - A nine-person jury found Santa Clara County not liable on Thursday evening in the 2020 jailhouse suicide of 40-year-old Frederick Inea Regal.

The verdict came after 10 days of trial, which started June 24, and several days of deliberations.

The plaintiffs, Regal's three children, first sued the county in 2022, accusing its officials of "deliberate indifference" to their father's mental health when he was arrested in 2020, claiming the county knowingly housed inmates in isolation cells with hanging risks and poor monitoring.

They claimed the jail had long failed to follow court-ordered suicide prevention measures that could have saved his life, including requirements to build suicide-resistant cells to house at-risk inmates.

At trial, the family described Regal as a caring father battling substance abuse, noting he had been improving before his July 2020 relapse and arrest. One witness testified that despite a divorce in 2018, Regal shared co-parenting responsibilities and remained present in his children's lives.

"He was a very fun-loving father. He was more of a friend and a big brother to his kids. He would always make them laugh," Mike Leithmann, Regal's father-in-law, testified.

The county defended its inmate intake process, which it said "quadruple-checks" inmates for suicide risks upon entry to the jail, as well as the strength of its mental health practices for inmates while in custody.

The county also said some of Regal's isolation couldn't be helped, noting he was admitted at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, and that it took all appropriate steps to prevent Regal's death

"Mental health experts will tell you - Not every suicide is foreseeable. Not every suicide is preventable," the county's attorney Jose Luis Martinez told the jury.

Regal had been appropriately categorized as a "moderate suicide risk" upon admittance to the jail, the county argued - a fact not challenged by the family - and that his death was part of a "brutal truth" about suicide.

Regal's family sought $16 million in damages - $1 million for his pain and suffering and $5 million for each of his three children, who they said were deprived of their father's love, guidance and support as a result of the county's actions.

During Regal's relapse before his arrest, the plaintiffs said he told friends and family that he was experiencing suicidal thoughts.

As the owner of a private security business, Regal owned firearms and he reached out to friends and family to try and get rid of them during his decline. At one point, the county said he called his partner on FaceTime and placed a handgun in his mouth.

San Jose police officers arrested Regal in July 2020 after he fired 54 rounds from a pistol and shotgun into the walls of his rented warehouse, where he worked and sometimes slept. No one was injured.

After his arrest, Regal told officials at Elmwood Correctional Facility he was under the influence and asked to see a psychiatrist. His intake assessment noted a history of mood swings, depression and suicidal thoughts. Despite this, he was housed alone in a cell with bed linens and an upper bunk out of deputies' sight, with no video or audio monitoring.

The county says Regal was checked every 15 minutes as a precaution against suicide. One of the checks was performed by Consuelo Garcia, a licensed marriage and family therapist who reported Regal saying, "Yes, I'm suicidal," "I'm depressed" and "Personal things are going on in my life."

About one hour later, jail officer Omar Cevallos found Regal hanging from a bed sheet attached to the upper bunk in his cell.

Regal was transported to the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center and placed on life support until he died on Aug. 5, 2020. Traces of methamphetamine, Xanax and ecstasy were found in his system post-death.

In court, Regal's family highlighted a 2016 report outlining the risk of jail suicides could be reduced by avoiding these factors and ensuring that metal bunk beds are bolted to the wall. The report also recommended that inmates who express suicidal ideation should be observed by staff every 10 minutes, and those who are actively suicidal should be observed without interruption.

In April, Freeman tossed claims against the inmate's therapist but allowed claims that the county violated Regal's rights through practices related to its suicide prevention policies to move forward.

This case, filed in the Northern District of California, was argued at the Robert F. Peckham Federal Courthouse in San Jose.

If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). Visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.

Source: Courthouse News Service