The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, the Division of Community Corrections and a medical service contractor, Corizon Inc., have all been named in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family members of an inmate that died in custody, as reported by Kentucky.com
The case was recently transferred from state to federal court at the request of the defendants.
The original suit was filed on November 13 in Fayette County Circuit Court by J.M.'s two former wives and his father. The suit also name Mayor J.G., jail Director R.B., 14 corrections officers and nine Corizon employees as defendants. Damages are yet to be specified.
According to the suit, inmate J.M. was allegedly assaulted, restrained and pepper sprayed while he was having a seizure.
The wrongful death suit accused the defendants of depriving J.M.'s father, former wives and three children of his "love, affection, companionship and consortium."
J.M.'s sudden death on May 22 occurred during a 10-day prison sentence he had received for DUI. Asphyxiation on his own vomit, according to the Fayette County coroner, was the cause of death.
In representing the family, attorney Kevin P. Fox was given surveillance videos – totaling approximately 45 minutes – that show J.M. struggling with prison personnel. They begin with J.M.'s seizure and ends with when he was left, unresponsive, in the University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital.
Some of the video is blocked by approximately one dozen officers entering and exiting J.M.'s cell. A video that was taken from a camera mounted on the ceiling depicts the officers taking sudden actions to subdue J.M.
Prison staff contend that during the altercation with J.M. he was combative and spit blood onto a nurse – though none of this is easily seen on the video.
During the 45 minutes J.M. was pepper sprayed, handcuffed, restrained into a chair and given a shot on the anti-anxiety drug Ativan. A mesh spit mask was also placed on him.
Once he was restrained into the chair a female officer began using a handheld video camera. The prison uses such devices during emergency events only. On that recording J.M. is seen rocking himself back and forth while coughing. Just before he is calmed down by the Ativan shot, he is audibly saying something that may have been, "Help. Please."
Once J.M. appears to be calm enough corrections officer place him facedown onto a cot. Two, or more, guards are then seen removing the mask, handcuffs and shackles. They also attempt to wash the pepper spray from his eyes.
Thirty minutes later an officer observes that J.M. is no longer breathing. J.M. is told to wake up. When he fails to respond, he is flipped onto his back and CPR is begun.
An ambulance arrived ten minutes later, while life-saving attempts continued, however, once he arrived at the hospital he was pronounced dead.
Contact a personal injury lawyer if you have a case of wrongful death. Filing your lawsuit may result in a monetary award for your damages.