A 26-year-old area man attempted to commit suicide while being booked into the St. Tammany Parish Jail Thursday morning.

This comes after the director of the American Civil Liberties Union, Marjorie Esman, announced last week that she and Sheriff Jack Strain have come to an agreement concerning the use of the booking cages for suicidal inmates.

Strain has stood by his claim that the booking cages are the safest possible place for an inmate that is determined to kill himself to be placed. He said it is the only place in the jail where the inmate can be monitored around the clock by deputies that are literally within hands reach. After calling the use of the 3-foot by 3-foot booking cages to house suicidal prisoners “squirrel cages,” Esman conceded last week that the use of them are OK as long as they are used as a last resort and only for patients that have been deemed by a medical professional to be a threat to themselves.

At approximately 1:30 Thursday morning, Michael Williams was brought into the jail and was placed into one of the cages to be booked, as is policy in the jail.

He had been arrested for domestic abuse battery and contempt of court for failing to appear in court for a possession of alcohol in a motor vehicle charge.

George Bonnett, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said, Williams attempted to take his own life while in the booking cell. The details concerning the method of attempted suicide is being withheld by the Sheriff’s Office because the incident is still under investigation.

Bonnett said Williams’ attempt to kill himself failed because deputies were within a few feet of him at the time and were able to enter the cage and successfully stop him.

Bonnett said the incident happened within three minutes of Williams being placed in the cage.

After the incident, Williams was evaluated by the jail’s medical personnel and was transported to St. Tammany Parish Hospital for observation.

He was returned to the jail later Thursday and was placed on suicide watch.