US prisoner dies after denial of care

Xavius Scullark-Johnson, 27, was three months away from getting out of the Rush City prison when he died in June 2010, Star Tribune reported.

The detainee was serving a five-month sentence for a probation violation stemming from a second-degree assault conviction.

His mother Olivia Scullark sued nurses, who turned away an ambulance, as well as other medical staff and corrections officers.

Scullark told The Huffington Post she filed the lawsuit because her son, who suffered from schizophrenia and a seizure disorder, told her to do so if he did not make it out of the prison alive.

“My son has written me a lot of letters,” Scullark said. “His seizures got worse there. He said if he doesn’t get out of there, I should sue them.”

The Minnesota Department of Corrections declined to comment on Scullark-Johnson’s death, citing the pending litigation.

Scullark said her son deserved to be treated much better. “You can’t even leave an animal like that,” she said. “I’m pretty angry, but I’m glad that some justice is gonna come.”

According to the report, Scullark-Johnson was found “soaked in urine on the floor of his cell” on the night of June 28, 2010. “He was coiled in a fetal position and in an altered state of consciousness that suggested he had suffered a seizure.”

One nurse left the prison after her shift ended without contacting the on-call doctor, instead telling corrections officers to keep an eye on him, according to the documents.

When a corrections officer later phoned the doctor after Scullark-Johnson’s condition seemed to worsen, the doctor advised the officer to call 911. When an ambulance showed up to take Scullark-Johnson to a hospital, the nurse on duty, Denise Garin, turned it away. Scullark-Johnson was pronounced dead hours later.

AGB/JR

You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes