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Mr. Epstein was supposed to have been checked by the two guards in the protective housing unit every 30 minutes, but that procedure was not followed that night, a law-enforcement official with knowledge of his detention said.
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The law-enforcement official with knowledge of the investigation said that when the decision was made to remove Mr. Epstein from suicide watch, the jail informed the Justice Department that Mr. Epstein would have a cellmate and that a guard “would look into his cell†every 30 minutes.
But that was apparently not done, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the death was still under investigation.
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Cameron Lindsay, a former warden at the federal jail in Brooklyn and four other facilities, said senior officials at the M.C.C. made a series of mistakes in handling Mr. Epstein.
For starters, Mr. Lindsay said Mr. Epstein should not have been taken off suicide watch, even if the prison’s chief psychologist had determined it was safe to do so. With a high-profile inmate, the warden should have erred on the side of caution and kept him under close surveillance, separate from other inmates, Mr. Lindsay said.
“A psychologist is going to think one way, but a warden needs to think a different way,†he said. “You have to take the conservative, safe route and keep an individual like this on suicide watch.â€
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