Jonte “Rock Steady” Willis the one-time U.S. amateur super heavyweight champion sits in the Pierce County Jail, waiting for admission to Western State Hospital and mental-health treatment theoretically guaranteed by law.
He’s been locked up since July 23 on a no-bail hold. He gets no treatment — no medication, no therapy, no counseling, no help. Legal and bureaucratic barriers hinder it. Judy Snow, the jail’s mental health manager, calls them “cinder blocks.”
Since July, judges have filed 21 contempt of court orders against the Department of Social and Health Services, which runs Western State. The orders come with fines that range from $150 to $500 a day.
The total bill from Pierce County stands at $107,000 and climbing.
In response to the contempt orders, state leaders give the same