Widow still moving forward with wrongful death lawsuit against jail. September
18, 2008
[image: Sean Levert]
*Prosecutors on Tuesday ruled out criminal conduct in the March 30th
death of Sean Levert in an Ohio jail, but his widow Angela Lowe says her
wrongful death lawsuit against jail officials will still go forward.
"It is a finding of no criminal wrongdoing and the lawsuit we have
filed focuses on civil wrongdoings ... one has absolutely nothing to do with
another," said Lowe's lawyer Dennis Niermann.
Levert fell ill while incarcerated for failure to pay child support,
and died shortly after being rushed to the hospital. Lowe accuses jail
officials of neglecting his medical needs, but prosecutors said they found
no evidence of criminal conduct after reviewing the results of an internal
investigation.
The prosecutor's office released 162 pages of documents on Tuesday,
including interviews with jail officials and a 3-minute video of Levert
being placed in a restraint chair after he pounded on his cell walls and
floor. Levert is seen repeatedly shouting "no, no" and "mommy, mommy" as
several jail officers tie him to the restraint chair. He died about an hour
later.
He had been placed in the jail's psychiatric unit earlier that day
after stating that his son fell into a pool outside his cell window.
County Coroner Frank Miller, who previously ruled out foul play or
trauma, said Levert, 39, died from complications of the inflammatory lung
disease sarcoidosis, and also suffered from other conditions, including
heart disease, high blood sugar and withdrawal from the anti-anxiety drug
Xanax.
Lowe's lawsuit contends that Levert suffered from severe anxiety and
that he brought his prescription for Xanax to jail but was not given the
medication. He had just started a 22-month sentence for failure to pay child
support. The lawsuit accuses the sheriff's department of failing to give
Levert an adequate nursing assessment or mental health assessment and of
failing to notify the jail pharmacy of his need for medication.
Investigators interviewed Christine Dubber, manager of health care
services for the county jail, who said inmates are not allowed to take Xanax
unless they are evaluated by a jail psychiatrist. She said Levert was
scheduled to see one on April 8.
"Due to the volume of inmates and the level of severity, the schedule
is based on need," she stated, adding that Levert's vitals were normal when
he was given his initial health assessment on March 25, a day after he
entered the jail.
--
"Usually when people are sad, they don't do anything. They just cry over
their condition. But when they get angry, they bring about a change."
- Malcolm X, Malcolm X Speaks, 1965
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