Absolutely Egregious: Man Jailed For Unpaid Traffic Ticket Gets Ignored Until He Dies In Custody
This is so terrible. The guy -- from a Detroit area suburb -- is off his addiction-treatment meds and in withdrawal, and, at one point, lies under his bed, clawing up at it. What kind of person looks at a human being in this condition and just leaves them in their cage?
During his 17 days in jail, in the final days the horror of his withdrawal, he laid there on the floor for 48 hours, waiting to die -- in a cell that was supposed to be specially monitored.
This guy was not a violent criminal. He lost 50 pounds in 17 days while jailed for an unpaid ticket.
Robby Soave has more at Reason:
Stojcevski was a drug addict, and was taking Methadone, Xanax, and Klonopin to treat his addiction. But without access to these prescriptions, he quickly went into withdrawal while in jail, according to WDIV's expert. Withdrawal caused him to behave irrationally, but jail officials ignored these obvious symptoms and instead placed him in a cell for the mentally unstable. He was stripped naked--so that he couldn't hurt himself--and forced to languish under the unceasing bright lights (the jail doesn't turn them off, even at night).At one point, Stojcevski began fighting with another (naked) inmate, who was then moved out of the cell. Sometime later, completely alone, Stojcevski could be seen reenacting the fight--a clear sign of hallucination.
On his last day of life, the man refused to touch his food and was too weak to get up from the floor.
It really is absolutely horrendous.
I see no reason why none of the jailors responsible for this man, or none of the jailors whose duties placed them before the monitor for significant periods in the last 10 days should not be charged with murder, manslaughter or negligent homicide.
As well as their warden.
jerry at September 25, 2015 12:10 AM
I sure wish someone (anyone) w/money would just rip this organization to shreds via TV ads, billboards, and public news ads. Sue and sue again and after some time goes by accidents happen.
Bob in Texas at September 25, 2015 6:10 AM
It so happens that I have met both current Macomb County Sheriff Wickersham and the immediately-prior Sheriff Hackel, who is now county executive. Neither man struck me as being depraved or indifferent enough to the fate of those locked up in the county jail that this can have happened as a matter of policy. Nevertheless, on a principle of joint and several responsibility for this appalling situation, Sheriff Wickersham should resign.
Now. You don't die of heroin withdrawal. It's nasty and uncomfortable, but not life-threatening. So it follows that what he died of had to do with the medications he was taking. Article states he was taking prescribed Xanax and Klonopil, both used to treat the side-effects of heroin addition treatment. Both are benzodiazapenes, and sudden, complete withdrawal from those can have some extremely nasty side-effects such as intense seizures, and can definitely be fatal.
It seems incredible to me that he could spend 17 days in the county jail, including multiple medical attentions, and nobody could figure out to either administer his prescribed medications, or that what was happening to him was a result of their being withheld. These are pills and liquids, taken on a fixed schedule, there's no issues with security that I can see. Haul him off to the nurse and give him his pills - he can be forced to ingest them if he shows a desire not to.
(The sad irony is that if he'd not gone for treatment for his heroin addiction, and instead been taken to the county jail while still addicted to heroin, he'd be alive today.)
I'm sure that more has yet to come out about this situation but it's definitely an appalling lack of care by the jail staff, including whatever medical personnel they have on hand. No matter what his prior situation, the jail has a duty to care for him to some minimum standard, and not simply to allow him to die by neglect or indifference. You can't persuade me that there wasn't a single jailer in all those 17 days that could figure out that he was in a very bad and dangerous state.
What follows is not an excuse but a possible reason - having seen the operations of a county jail up-close, what I can imagine is that what was missing was any sort of continuity among the jailers and the medical staff. IOW, nobody saw him for more than one or two days at a time, for whatever scheduling and personnel reasons, and so his deteriorating state was not evident to any one individual. Jails are full of people with more-or-less severe mental health issues, so a jailer coming back after two weeks vacation, or a nurse on rotating shifts, may not have seen how he was before - they just see him as he presents now, and his records are likely very sketchy anyway. He's just another very-sick addict hauled in off the street, they may not have been aware of his prior history. That may be a reason, but is no excuse - the command is there to provide oversight and continuity precisely to avoid these sorts of issues from developing.
The sheriff and his jailers will cry the usual blues about how they are not equipped or trained to deal with addicts and the mentally ill. To which I would respond - why not? It's the reality of what you're taking in, you'd better get used to it. And what training is required to administer prescribed medications? If he'd been a diabetic, and he'd died in the jail because nobody gave him his insulin - would that be an excuse? This is no different, the fact that he's a junkie doesn't absolve the jail of the responsibility to provide medical care.
llater,
llamas
llamas at September 25, 2015 6:25 AM
Guy isn't eating.
Guy is curled up under the bed.
What, they don't check on them more than once in an 8 hour shift?
Strip them of their immunity. Allow the next of kin to sue them all as individuals.
That will make them have more diligence. Not equipped or trained to deal with situations like this? which which cheaper: training & equipment, or paying out wrongful death claims?
I R A Darth Aggie at September 25, 2015 6:37 AM
The real problem here is that once you've been arrested(not convicted) and put in jail, you are no longer considered a human being by your jailers. And thus no longer worthy of human consideration.
Matt at September 25, 2015 8:30 AM
I'd suggest something closer to these than to resignations (or even civil suits)
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Involuntary manslaughter[edit]
Involuntary manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice aforethought, either expressed or implied. It is distinguished from voluntary manslaughter by the absence of intention. It is normally divided into two categories; constructive manslaughter and criminally negligent manslaughter, both of which involve criminal liability.
Constructive manslaughter[edit]
Constructive manslaughter is also referred to as ‘unlawful act’ manslaughter. It is based on the doctrine of constructive malice, whereby the malicious intent inherent in the commission of a crime is considered to apply to the consequences of that crime. It occurs when someone kills, without intent, in the course of committing an unlawful act. The malice involved in the crime is transferred to the killing, resulting in a charge of manslaughter.
For example, a person who runs a red light driving a vehicle and hits someone crossing the street could be found to intend or be reckless as to assault or criminal damage (see DPP v Newbury[6]). There is no intent to kill, and a resulting death would not be considered murder, but would be considered involuntary manslaughter. The accused's responsibility for causing death is constructed from the fault in committing what might have been a minor criminal act. Reckless drinking or reckless handling of a potentially lethal weapon may result in a death that is deemed manslaughter.
Involuntary manslaughter may be distinguished from accidental death. A person who is driving carefully, but whose car nevertheless hits a child darting out into the street, has not committed manslaughter. A person who pushes off an aggressive drunk, who then falls and dies, has probably not committed manslaughter, although in some jurisdictions it may depend whether "excessive force" was used or other factors.
It is also possible to be held civilly liable for a death (and pay damages) without being criminally liable (and going to prison), e.g. O.J. Simpson.
As manslaughter is not defined by legislation in Australia, common law decisions provide the basis for determining whether an act resulting in death amounts to manslaughter by unlawful and dangerous act.[7] To be found guilty of manslaughter by an unlawful and dangerous act, the accused must be shown to have committed an unlawful act which is contrary to the criminal law[8] and that a reasonable person in the position of the accused would have known that by his or her act, he or she was exposing the victim to an ‘appreciable risk of serious injury’.[9]
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Negligent homicide is a criminal charge brought against people who, through criminal negligence, allow others to die.
Negligent homicide is a lesser included offense to first and second degree murder, in the sense that someone guilty of this offense can expect a more lenient sentence, often with imprisonment time comparable to manslaughter. U.S. states all define negligent homicide by statute. In some, the offense includes the killing of another while driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Examples include the crash of Aeroperu Flight 603 near Lima, Peru. The accident was caused by a piece of duct tape that was accidentally left over the static ports (on the bottom side of the fuselage) after cleaning the aircraft, which led to the crash. Employee Eleuterio Chacaliaza left the tape on by accident[1] and was charged with negligent homicide.
jerry at September 25, 2015 10:13 AM
Examples include the crash of Aeroperu Flight 603 near Lima, Peru. The accident was caused by a piece of duct tape that was accidentally left over the static ports (on the bottom side of the fuselage) after cleaning the aircraft, which led to the crash. Employee Eleuterio Chacaliaza left the tape on by accident[1] and was charged with negligent homicide.
Posted by: jerry at September 25, 2015 10:13 AM
Extending your logic, Jerry, if a doctor was criminally liable for leaving a sponge in a patient (as opposed to civilly liable as they are now): Do you think anyone other than a half wit would risk becoming a surgeon?
Civil liability is usually enough to keep most people honest, and criminal liability for mistakes, or negligence would leave a lot of people dying in the streets.
I think we are over policed, but I don't see criminal liability as any kind of a solution.
Isab at September 25, 2015 12:18 PM
This is not to exonerate the officers involved, but to add a little something to the dialogue.
As someone who has actually been involved in dealing with the incarcerated, and actually had to stand on 'suicide' watch, I have seen inmates who were clearly acting crazy just to act crazy. They are looking for a reaction from the Guards et al. Some are actually crazy...and some are actually crazy but also mug up to make things look worse than they actually are. Some fake it to get isolated from some guy who is trying to get even with him.
So how do you sort out the fakers from the people with real problems? If you can figure it out, let the prison industry know. This can be regrettable and still understandable in how it happened.
FIDO at September 28, 2015 9:29 AM
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