2 Jail Staff on administrative leave, criminal investigation underway in Chatham Co. jail beating; Mother of victim still not contacted

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - A mother says she learned from people contacting her daughter that her son was in the ICU after a beating at the Chatham County jail last Tuesday.

Nearly a week later, she says no one from the jail or the hospital has called her.

Quantina Stamper-Williams told WTOC she is speaking out for others.

“I’m speaking for the voices who don’t want to speak. Something has got to be done,” Stamper-Williams said.

What the mother says happened

Stamper-Williams said her son was jumped last Tuesday at the jail. She said his injuries were serious enough that he was taken to the hospital’s ICU.

She said that around 8 a.m. Wednesday, she heard people were saying her son was in the ICU. She said she got in her car and drove strait to the Sheriff’s Office.

Stamper-Williams said she has heard from others that the people involved were inmates who were not supposed to be in that unit, but that doors were open that shouldn’t be.

Visit to the Sheriff’s Office

Stamper-Williams said staff at the Sheriff’s Office told her twice that her son was still in jail, and was okay.

She said a staff member asked who told her about the ICU.

“It don’t matter who told me that. I’m here to check on my son to make sure he’s okay. So she was like, well, if that was the case, she say someone from here would have reached out to you,” Stamper-Williams said. “So she got on the phone, she called somebody. And when she got the phone, she said that your son is okay. So I say, are you sure? She say, yes, he’s okay.”

Stamper-Williams said something did not sit right with her. She said she called the Sheriff’s Office back and staff told her someone would call her back. She said that never happened.

She said she and her family members have messaged the Sheriff multiple times and have not heard back from him.

Visit to the hospital

Stamper-Williams said she then went to the hospital. She said two staff members told her what room her son was in. She said that when she got to his floor, an employee told her, “We don’t have anyone here by that name.”

“I said, that’s my son right there. That’s my son right there. And it was two officers in the room with him, one on each side, but they both was in their phones. So the lady, she jumped up and she was like, y’all cannot be back here. Y’all have to leave,” Stamper-Williams said.

Not knowing her son’s injuries or condition has been unbearable for his family, she said.

“I’m devastated. I’m destroyed. You can’t tell me anything about my son. Nothing. Y’all won’t even allow me to go see my son?? And my son is fighting for his life,” Stamper-Williams said.

She said she cannot go to the hospital to hold her son’s hand or see him.

“That’s a no-no. That’s a big no-no. I don’t care who child it is. They deserve to know what’s going on with their kids, with their loved ones,” she said.

Mother’s message to the sheriff

“I know things happen in prison and jail. My main concern is y’all haven’t reached out to me. But you can be sitting on blocks, on people blocks. Beating the streets down, but you couldn’t beat my door down. You couldn’t find my house and beat my door down,” Stamper-Williams said.

“He needs to be at the jailhouse. Making sure that those inmates are safe. Not be in the streets now. You spend more time in the streets than you do at the Coleman Inn,” she said.

Statements from the sheriff and hospital

Sheriff Richard Coleman said in a statement that his office has started an active criminal investigation and is looking to pursue charges.

“There was a situation where two inmates were involved in a physical altercation. One inmate was sent to the hospital for injury complaints. We have started an active criminal investigation on the matter. As we are looking to pursue criminal charges on the involved parties that have been identified. We are also looking into the matter internally,” Sheriff Coleman said.

“As an act of best practices, I have ordered a review of our procedures, and safety protocols to ensure they aligned with our response to the incident. 2 employees have been placed on administrative leave with pay, while we conduct our internal review,” The Sheriff’s statement continued.

WTOC asked Sheriff Coleman about the policy for notifying families when a detainee goes to the hospital. He said that is why the review was ordered. We received no further response.

Memorial Health also provided a statement:

“When a patient is in law enforcement custody, the responsible agency coordinates matters involving family notification and visitation. We work closely with law enforcement and families to support patient safety. Out of respect for patient privacy, we cannot discuss individual circumstances publicly,” the hospital said.

As of Monday night, this mother has still received no reply and no information on her son’s condition.