Mysteries surround death of man at Salem prison

A 27-year-old Salem man is one of nearly 20 inmates who died unexpectedly in Oregon state prisons since 2015.

James Emerson Howland III died July 18 after being found unresponsive in his cell at the Oregon State Penitentiary.

An obscure, illegal synthetic marijuana compound is suspected to be behind the prison's most recent death. But, as with many inmate deaths, the circumstances have remained a mystery while the investigation is under way.

Howland, known to his friends and family as Jimmy, was on life support at Salem Hospital for two days before officials contacted his sister, Crystal Gonzalez.

She and her family sat in his guarded hospital room and faced the decision whether to take Howland off life support. They were told he was declared brain dead and would not recover. Prison officials told her Howland had been unconscious for 20 minutes before he was found, Gonzalez said.

She waited until her mother returned from a trip, and they said their goodbyes.

Immediately, his hospital room was declared a crime scene and they left, Gonzalez said.

In a statement, Oregon Department of Corrections spokeswoman Elizabeth Craig said the department could not comment on Howland's death because of a pending investigation by Oregon State Police. She would not confirm or deny Gonzalez's account of her brother's final days.

"Although I cannot provide any details at this time, I would like to say that the safety and security of our institutions is of the utmost importance," Craig said. "We are cooperating fully with law enforcement as they investigate this death."

For the second time in less than three years, Kristi Howland, James Howland's mother, had lost a son. James Howland's brother died in 2013. Four years earlier, James had been convicted of stealing a car and eluding police. He served his time and remained crime-free until after his brother's suicide.

The loss drove him to make mistakes, Gonzalez said. His old habits returned, and he was arrested for car theft, methamphetamine possession and second degree theft.

He pleaded guilty to reckless driving, hit-and-run with property damage and three counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle in 2014. Later that year, he filed an appeal, but Gonzalez said he gave up on the appeal and focused on serving his time and getting home to his 9-year-old daughter. His earliest release date was Jan. 23, 2023.

Kristi Howland said her son took parenting classes and worked in the prison kitchen. He loved spending every available moment outside in the prison yard.

Amidst their grief, the family felt anger: for not being notified earlier, for feeling left in the dark by prison officials and for losing a son, brother, father and friend to unknown circumstances.

Deputy State Medical Examiner Dr. Larry Lewman is awaiting toxicology reports to determine Howland's cause of death, but Gonzalez said prison officials told her that her brother died of an overdose. She doesn't know how or why officials determined this. However, she said one medical worker initially disclosed that his toxicology screen came back clear.

"I know my son, and he would not have done this to himself," Kristi Howland said.

In a recent memo, Oregon State Penitentiary staff members were notified of 10 separate incidents in which inmates needed medical intervention and hospitalization after they experienced seizure-like symptoms, vomiting and difficulty breathing.

Although the memo didn't mention Howland, it did note: "One of those incidents resulted in the eventual death of an inmate."

In five of the cases, inmates were discovered with synthetic marijuana in their possession.

Craig clarified the memo and said the department made a mistake in attributing the death to the drug.

"A conclusion about his death has not been made and DOC is not the entity that makes that conclusion," she said.

Synthetic marijuana, also known as "Spice" and "K2," was once sold at freely at smoke shops under the guise of being an herbal incense product. Salem police Lt. Dave Okada said the drug used to be more prevalent. In South Salem, police responded to a string of incidents four or five years ago during which teenagers had bad reactions after smoking the substance.

The drug is usually a dried herb doused in chemicals that produce a marijuana-like high. It is notorious for causing reactions such as paranoia, suicidal thoughts, accelerated heart rate, brain damage and even death, the memo said.

The Oregon Board of Pharmacy banned the sale and possession of synthetic marijuana in 2011, said Marcus Watt, executive director of the board.

The board listed the chemicals in synthetic marijuana as Schedule 1 controlled substance. Watt said the ban was encouraged by law enforcement and medical officials, who reported seeing a spike in overdoses, especially among teens and young adults, of the widely available drug.

The ban, combined with the legalization of actual marijuana, "almost made the whole issue disappear in the state," Watt said.

Okada said Salem's street crimes team receives sporadic but infrequent reports of smoke shops selling Spice-like substances. No recent arrests have been made in Salem.

In DOC's memo, staff were warned, "Spice is associated with toxic side effects which are far more dangerous than just marijuana."

Limiting contraband, such as drugs, tobacco, weapons and cell phones, is a constant struggle for prison officials. In 2011, weapons and drug paraphernalia were found during a massive contraband search at the Oregon State Penitentiary.

The prison was placed on full lockdown after a spate of racially charged fights. It was the first prisonwide shakedown since 1996, when the penitentiary was locked down for several days after an inmate was slain and a fire set in the prison's furniture factory. In that case, an inmate was convicted of murdering a sex offender in the furniture factory.

"In recent years, the penitentiary has conducted smaller-scale security sweeps," reporter Alan Gustafson wrote.

In 2009, a former Oregon State Penitentiary corrections officer was accused of smuggling tobacco and muscle-building supplements and selling them to inmates. He was found not guilty a year later.

A corrections officer at Snake River was fired in 2010 for passing contraband to inmates. He lied to police and state investigators about his conduct during an inquiry. ​

Punishments for inmates caught with contraband range for segregation to revoked privileges, according to the DOC inmate visitor handbook. Smuggling contraband into a correctional facility is considered a felony.

The idea of Howland smoking Spice didn't match up with the man they knew, Gonzalez said. Even if he did, family members wondered how such a dangerous substance would have been available in a maximum security prison.

Different scenarios filled in the gaps left blank by the limited information the family was given. Was Howland poisoned? Murdered? How much time passed before he was found? Was he alone? Where was his cellmate? Why wasn't he out in the yard, where he usually spent every spare minute?

After receiving conflicting information from prison and hospital staff, the family decided they wanted an independent autopsy performed by a forensic pathologist. The procedure can cost as much as $10,000, so they are working to raise donations through a Wells Fargo account and a YouCaring.com fundraiser. Those wanting to donate to the account can go into any Wells Fargo bank and donate to the account "2000127346 James Jimmy Howland."

"Our hearts are just really hurt," Kristi Howland said, adding the hardest part was telling James Howland's daughter that her dad wasn't coming home.

As with all unexpected inmate deaths, the Oregon State Police Criminal Investigations Unit is investigating Howland's death.

His body remains at a funeral home while his family waits for an autopsy report to finally answer their questions.

"We're angry," Gonzalez said. "We're sad, and nobody is giving us answers."

Email wmwoodwort@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth

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