ST. LOUIS 鈥 A detainee at the city鈥檚 downtown jail was found dead Saturday night after guards put him in a 鈥渞estraint chair,鈥 police said in a statement Sunday.
Police said the detainee, 31-year-old Samuel L. Hayes Jr., had gotten into an altercation with another detainee around 8:20 p.m. and failed to comply with commands from jail guards afterward. Hayes was then placed in a restraint chair, a device that allows jailers to immobilize detainees by securing their arms and legs.
Hayes was found unresponsive around 10 p.m. and taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The police department鈥檚 Force Investigations Unit, which handles inquiries into all in-custody deaths and use of deadly force by law enforcement in the city, is investigating. An autopsy by the city medical examiner鈥檚 office is expected early this week.
Alderman Rasheen Aldridge, who has sponsored multiple bills aimed at improving jail oversight, said he would be watching closely.
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The restraints may have made sense after the altercation, he said. But he wondered how Hayes was monitored afterward.
鈥淲hat happened in that hour and a half?鈥 he asked.
Hayes鈥 family members were asking similar questions.
鈥淚 want to know why he died,鈥 Hayes鈥 father, Samuel L. Hayes Sr., said.
The use of a restraint chair is not uncommon in jails across the country, and experts have said they can be helpful in stopping people from hurting themselves or others. But they have also been blamed for a in and linking the chairs to blood clots and overdoses.
The death of Hayes, who police said had been held in the jail on a first-degree murder charge, also follows years of efforts to shore up conditions at the City Justice Center, which sits across the street from City Hall on South Tucker Boulevard downtown.
Since 2020, it has been buffeted by rioting, hostage-taking and at least 19 detainee deaths. Detainees and their family members have complained of dismal health care services. Attorneys have complained of trouble getting access to clients.
And earlier this year, a consultant reviewing the facility reported that the jail was severely understaffed, warehousing inmates with nothing to do and taking in so many detainees that it soon wouldn鈥檛 be able to house them all. The report also mentioned lingering concerns about drugs being brought into the facility.
The consultant, Doug Burris, was hired as the city鈥檚 jail commissioner in January and tasked with implementing changes.
Three months later, Mayor Cara Spencer was elected after promising to improve conditions and transparency at the jail.
In separate statements Sunday, Burris and Spencer lamented the death and vowed that accountability would follow.
鈥淭he Division of Corrections recognizes that any death in custody is a profoundly serious matter and extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased,鈥 Burris said. 鈥淭he Division is fully cooperating with the ongoing investigation.鈥
鈥淲hile the facts are being gathered, my office is committed to ensuring accountability and a full review of the circumstances surrounding this incident,鈥 Spencer said. 鈥淚 have been clear about my commitment to ensuring the safety of those in our care at the jail, and reforming the jail is one of my top priorities.
鈥淲e will continue to support and await the SLMPD鈥檚 thorough investigation and final report.鈥
Post-Dispatch photographers capture tens of thousands of images every year. See some of their best work that was either taken in June 2025 in this video. Edited by Jenna Jones.
