Family demands answers about death of Tara Williams

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- During Sheriff Oscar Ugarte's town hall meeting this past Saturday, the family of Tara Williams questioned Sheriff Ugarte as to why Williams was able to take her own life while in their custody.

Rosalie Vicenti, Tara Williams' mother, told ABC-7 during an interview that her daughter was supposed to be on suicide watch.

Vicenti further said that Williams was kept on life support for 4 days before she was notified that her daughter had taken her own life.

"I'm asking why were there so many deaths in that facility in 2025. And my daughter was one of them. I am asking why it took four days to contact me because my daughter was already dead," Vicenti told ABC-7 during an interview.

Vicenti says that as a Native American who is part of the Hickory Apache Tribe, she needed to bury her daughter within 4 days of her death in accordance to her beliefs and was unable to do so.

"If they were to, take, took, taken precaution inside the jail, guarding her the way they did at the hospital, she would still be here," said Vicenti

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office confirmed to ABC-7 that Tara Williams was one of ten in-custody deaths in 2025.

In response to an ABC-7 interview request, the El Paso County Sheriff's office sent this statement that read, quote,

"We can confirm that Tara Williams was one of ten in-custody deaths in 2025. Our office does not routinely release detailed information regarding suicides or deaths determined to be from natural causes.

As required by state law, and as explained by Sheriff Ugarte to the Williams family on Saturday, every in-custody death is reported to both the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) and the Texas Attorney General’s Office. Each case is thoroughly investigated by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Texas Rangers, and TCJS. To date, TCJS has not found our office to be out of compliance, and we remain in full adherence with all state-mandated protocols.

The health, safety, and well-being of individuals in our custody remain a top priority. We are committed to transparency, accountability, and the continuous improvement of our practices. If it is determined that employee actions contributed to a death, appropriate accountability measures will be taken."

Rosalie Vicenti, Tara Williams mother, told ABC-7 that she does not want any family to go through what they did.