Wrongful death claim filed against Florida prison system

If you recall, a woman recently filed a wrongful death claim against a county Sheriff’s Office in Florida. Now another wrongful death claim has been filed and names a Florida prison system as the defendant.

A Florida woman believes that several of the prison guards in the detention center caused her son’s death by spraying him with a specific chemical. While the chemical is typically used to subdue inmates, protocol calls for a different tactic when the inmate has asthma, as her son did.

She alleges that the prison officers were aware of the condition yet still chose to use the dangerous chemical. As a result, her son was unable to breathe and died. According to the lawsuit, the prison guards should not have used the chemical because the situation wasn’t escalated to the point of an emergency. Her son had been in the cell yelling when the guards came.

When individuals choose to file a lawsuit, there are different reasons as to why they do so. One reason is to hold the negligent party responsible. In this instance, the mother wants the guards and the prison to be held responsible for the death of her son who may still be alive had the officers followed the proper procedure.

But it appears that she also hopes that the lawsuit will prevent these types of incidents from occurring in the future to other inmates. She believes that inmates who have asthma should never be subdued using this method, especially since it could be fatal.

Currently the Department of Corrections has not made a public statement about the lawsuit. But no matter the circumstance, if the negligence of another person or entity causes a death they should be held responsible.

Source: NBC Miami: “Miami Mom Sues Prison After Son’s Death,” Todd Wright, Aug. 29, 2011