Inmate dies after fall inside Montgomery County Jail
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – A man serving time for missing a court date on marijuana charges fell to his death inside Montgomery County Jail this week.
At about 8 p.m. Monday, Barry Wade Hobbs, 53, fell from a second floor walkway, according to Hobbs' brother-in-law, Roy Constible of Powell, Tennessee.
Montgomery County Sheriff's Office spokesman Jamie Dexter confirmed the incident Wednesday morning.
Constible said he was told that Hobbs suffered a massive brain injury, a broken back and crushed knees.
Hobbs' wife was notified Tuesday morning, Constible said.
Dexter said an investigation is under way, but it appears Hobbs jumped from the upper level of a cell block pod, falling 9 feet.
The walkways have only rails on the sides, and Hobbs went over the rail, Dexter said.
He was transported to Gateway Medical Center, and then to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he died Tuesday night, Dexter said.
Arrested on marijuana charges
Hobbs, of 422 Lillian Drive, Clarksville, had been in jail since Friday evening after a string of court problems that began with possession of marijuana.
In March 2014, Hobbs was convicted of simple possession. The judge sentenced him to a year in jail but granted a conditional suspension if Hobbs could get clean.
One condition of Hobbs' probation was that he remain drug-free, but Hobbs tested positive for marijuana only one month later – in April – and again in July. He also failed to provide proof that he was in drug treatment, and he failed to pay court costs of $1,267.
He eventually did enroll in treatment at Centerstone, but the suspension of his sentence was revoked in July, and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
Hobbs was arrested and bonded out on Aug. 1. He was to appear in court on Aug. 8, but it appears he failed to show up.
A warrant for his arrest was issued Jan. 14, and he was arrested on Friday.
He had just been assigned a court-appointed attorney, Kathryn Stamey, but Stamey said Wednesday she had not had an opportunity to meet with Hobbs prior to the incident.
Inside the jail
A brief tour of an identical jail pod on Wednesday showed the walkway railings are outside the second-floor cells, with about a 9-foot fall to the floor below.
Montgomery County Sheriff's Lt. Dan Armstrong, who supervises inmate housing, explained that the walkway design is common in jail buildings, and the inmates are not allowed to linger near the railings.
While walkways between the pods are protected by locked chain-link fence, the walkways inside are not.
Armstrong said such fencing contains a lot of material that could be broken off and turned into weaponry, so fencing all walkways wouldn't be advisable.
He said he hadn't yet seen video surveillance of the incident.
Dexter said more information would be coming once the investigation is complete.
Earlier incidents at jail
Two previous incidents inside the jail have centered on heating and air conditioning units.
In July 2005, an inmate climbed to the top of a unit and threatened to jump. Two deputies trying to stop him fell about 8 feet and were injured.
In February 2013, two inmates climbed to the top of a unit, 15 feet off the ground, and held a daylong protest before climbing back down.
An inmate committed suicide at the jail in April 2009. Gerrard Robinson, who was awaiting trial on multiple murder charges, was found with a bed sheet tied around his neck hanging from a top bunk.
Chris Smith, 245-0282
Senior Editor
chrissmith@theleafchronicle.com
Twitter: @csmithleaf