The family of a man who died in the San Luis Obispo County Jail is accusing Sheriff Ian Parkinson of changing his story.
In an exclusive interview, Parkinson told KSBY that although he is responsible for everything that goes on at the jail, he did not make the call to put Andrew Holland in a restraint chair.
Holland, 33, suffered from schizophrenia and was strapped into the device for 46 hours straight in Jan. 2017. He died shortly after being released from the chair.
Parkinson told KSBY he was not aware Andrew was in the chair until he got the call Sunday that he had died.
Tave Holland, Andrew’s cousin, says he had a one-on-one meeting with Parkinson on March 2, 2017, and that during their four-hour discussion, the sheriff said he got the call about Andrew going into the chair on Friday night.
"Ian Parkinson stated that at all times, he had the ultimate call on (okaying) Drew’s placement in the chair, his continued retention in the chair, and the decision to release him was his as well," Tave Holland said in a statement released to KSBY.
On Thursday, Parkinson responded to Tave Holland’s claims saying, "I have never, during my time as sheriff, directed somebody to be placed in restraints."
