Federal Court Enters $2.6 Million Judgment against Clark County for Jail Suicide
Posted by Lauren Freidenberg
[CW: discussion of suicide, below]
After inmate Jessie Booth was placed on suicide watch, a Clark County Jail Deputy watched him repeatedly climb on top of the sink in his cell and jump off, yelling incoherently. The Deputy did nothing. Finally, Mr. Booth dove off the sink head-first onto the cement floor, attempting suicide.
Three weeks later, Mr. Booth succumbed to his catastrophic injuries, at age 29. He left behind a 3-year-old son.
Since the moment they admitted Mr. Booth into their Jail, Clark County Jail deputies believed he was under the influence of narcotics or suffering from the psychological symptoms of withdrawal, such as Delirium Tremens. Over many hours, they watched him deteriorate, noting in their written reports his increasingly erratic and strange behavior, but they ignored all of these signs. Instead of summoning medical providers to diagnose and treat him, Clark County Jail deputies moved Mr. Booth from cell to cell as his disturbing behavior escalated.
The Jail contracted with a private company, NaphCare, Inc., to provide medical and mental health care for its inmates. Despite Mr. Booth’s obvious deterioration, NaphCare provided no medical or mental healthcare. Instead, NaphCare employees allowed the Jail to move Mr. Booth from cell to cell, placing him on suicide watch, but without any medical intervention. NaphCare employees failed to implement a suicide prevention plan or even monitor Mr. Booth’s condition as he continued to deteriorate.
Lauren Freidenberg-McBride, Jesse Wing, along with MHB’s incredible support staff Lucas Wildner and Andrew Drake, represented Jessie’s estate, his minor son, and Jesse’s mother, filed a lawsuit for inadequate medical care in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and for medical malpractice.
The parties settled this civil rights matter in the early stages of litigation.
Judge Estudillo of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington entered judgment against Clark County for $2.6 million. As part of the settlement, Clark County modified its Suicide Identification and Intervention policy to require deputies to intervene whenever an inmate stands on an elevated surface:
“3. Inmates on suicide watch will be required to stay off elevated surfaces, to include sinks, toilets, upper bunks, or pony walls, etc. Inmates who engage in self-harm or are climbing on elevated services will be verbally directed to stop the behavior by the observing Officer. If an inmate does not de-escalate and continues to actively self-harm or climb on elevated surfaces, the observing Officer will act and call a “Code Red” for inmate disturbance/fight. When additional staff arrive, the inmate may be physically controlled and placed in restraints. The Shift Sergeant will work with Mental Health, if available, and make the determination if the inmate will be subject to restraints and/or be placed on constant suicide watch.”
The County also agreed to train its deputies on the new policy requirement for the next three years. Mr. Booth’s family insisted on the new policy requirement to reduce the chances of this kind of tragedy occurring again at the Jail.
The settlement with NaphCare, Inc. is confidential so cannot be disclosed.