The family of a Williamsburg man, who died on July 28 after being incarcerated in the Whitley County Detention Center four days earlier, is suing Whitley County in federal court for wrongful death.
The lawsuit, which was filed Monday in U.S. District Court by Williamsburg attorney Paul Croley, alleged that Ronald Shannon Lawson, 26, died from diabetes, and that his death was "unnecessary and preventable."
"Plaintiff’s believe and, after reasonable discovery, will show that Mr. Lawson’s treatment by defendants was not unusual, but was part of a continuing pattern of defendants of willfully and deliberately ignoring the medical needs of inmates of the jail," Croley wrote in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Lawson’s father, Ronald Lee Lawson, his wife, Shawnda Lawson, and their two minor children against Whitley County, Jailer Ken Mobley, Chief Deputy Jailer Bob O’Neil, deputy jailers Rhonda Hill, Billy Myers and Steve Claxton, and three unknown jail employees.
The lawsuit alleges that after Lawson’s incarceration, he was subjected to the defendants’ "deliberate indifference to his medical needs and, as a consequence, died."
"The purpose of a just correctional facility and system should never be to callously deprive inmates of life sustaining medical treatment," Croley wrote.
"Any correctional facility that condones and allows prisoners to be deliberately deprived of life sustaining medical treatment is failing its duty to society and its duty to provide inmates with humane living conditions during incarceration."
At the time of his death, Lawson was being held in the detention center in lieu of a $7,500 cash bond after being arrested on July 24 by Williamsburg police for speeding, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol/drugs, and first-degree possession of a controlled substance.
According to his arrest citation, Lawson admitted shooting up Roxicet on the day he was arrested, and police discovered seven Roxicets on him that day.
After Lawson became unresponsive on July 28, deputy jailers started CPR and notified Whitley County EMS, which transported Lawson to the Jellico Community Hospital, where he died later that day.
The lawsuit notes that diabetes is a common disease that affects an estimated 23.6 million American adults and children. The accepted standard of medical care for diabetes requires daily monitoring of the patient’s blood sugar levels, the administration of insulin as needed, and regular significant exercise.
After Lawson’s arrest, his family notified the jail staff that Lawson was diabetic and needed regular medical care, including the administration of insulin products, and that his father provided jail staff with insulin products and syringes shortly after his intake, according to the lawsuit.
"Given Mr. Lawson’s medical condition, defendants knew or reasonably should have know that Lawson was a medically at risk inmate who required regular monitoring and care," the lawsuit alleged.
For a period of three days, Lawson’s blood glucose levels ran dangerously high spiking between 300 and 481. A blood sugar level of 300 or 400 is 1.5 to two times the threshold for established diabetes, and is highly dangerous, especially when sustained for long periods of time, according to the lawsuit.
Lawson began complaining to jail staff and requested medical care. Then his condition deteriorated to the point that he suffered from seizures, according to the lawsuit.
"During these diabetic seizures, Mr. Lawson would frequently thrash about his cell hitting his legs, arms and head against metal and concrete fixtures," the lawsuit alleged.
"He was strapped to a chair in the detox cell at the jail so he would not injure himself. Ultimately, Mr. Lawson became delusional, non-responsive and incapacitated."
The lawsuit alleged that fellow inmates complained to jail employees and requested that medical care and attention be given to Lawson, but those complaints and requests were ignored.
There is no record that Lawson was ever examined at the jail by a medical professional after complaints were made by Lawson and fellow inmates, according to the lawsuit.
Jail officials routinely blamed Lawson for "faking" or "trying to get out of jail to go to the hospital," according to the lawsuit.
"Ultimately, after it was determined that Lawson’s situation was dire, a jail employee administered insulin to Lawson," according to the lawsuit. "Said employee had no experience or training in the administration of insulin.
"Said employee sought advice from another inmate prior to administering the dose to Lawson as to the proper method and dosage. Shortly thereafter, EMS was called and Lawson was taken to Jellico Community Hospital where he died from diabetes mellitus."
The lawsuit alleged that the jail staff’s conduct was intentional, reckless, deliberate, wanton, malicious, and indicative of their total, deliberate and reckless disregard and indifference to Lawson’s life and rights.
The lawsuit seeks damages for Lawson’s "unnecessary" pain and suffering, lost income and earning he would have enjoyed if he had lived, and damages for his wife and children for the loss of his companionship, comfort and support, plus punitive damages.
The lawsuit seeks trial by jury, attorney’s fees and all other relief that Lawson’s family might be entitled to receive.
Mobley said Tuesday morning that he couldn’t comment on the lawsuit because it is pending litigation.
