TAP TO CALL
In October of 2008, an 18-year-old Paterson resident tragically committed suicide while in custody at Passaic County Jail. Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. Partner Paul A. Garfield filed suit in the United States District Court, District of New Jersey, proved the jail was negligent in failing to create a safe environment for inmates, and won our client’s family a $600,000 settlement.
Our client was struggling with his mental health when he was first charged with terroristic threats and possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes. He and his mother got into an argument about her son’s disinterest in looking for work, which caused him to threaten his mother with a hunting knife. His mother called 911, and the boy was arrested. He was later released on bail after his mother secured a temporary restraining order (TRO) against him. He was on bail pending a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation to see if he qualified for Pre-trial Intervention (PTI), which is a diversion program for defendants as an alternative to prosecution. When the boy violated the TRO and began living with his mother again, the Court ordered that he remain at Passaic County Jail in the Special Watch Unit.
Passaic County Jail disregarded the Court Ordered Special Watch Unit. When the young man was brought into the prison’s custody, a nurse and psychologist examined him and agreed that he could be placed in the general population dormitory instead of the Special Watch Unit. The client was incarcerated for five days in the general population dorm, before eventually committing suicide by hanging himself. When a guard discovered him, he was rushed to St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson, New Jersey, but sadly could not be saved.
Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. retained several experts in prison practices to author narrative reports regarding jail hours describing our client’s pain, suffering, and financial losses, and proving the liability of the jail. The medical experts explained that our client died by asphyxiation and suffered immensely in his last moments alive. The economics expert, knowing that our client dreamed of becoming a lawyer or business entrepreneur, estimated his wage loss, as well as his ability to help his family with household services, for the report.
Partner Paul A. Garfield also hired a nursing expert and prison expert to prove liability in this case. The nursing expert found that the nurse had deviated from industry standards of care because she failed to ask about why our client had been placed into the Special Watch Unit and recommended his transfer into the general population dorm. She also admitted to having no training in psychiatric evaluation or suicide risk assessment during her time working at the jail. The prison expert found that the jail was overpopulated and understaffed. The expert learned that the psychologist who examined our client after the nurse was not a formally licensed clinical psychologist and had no formal training in suicidal risk assessment. At the time of our client’s suicide, he was the only provider of psychological care for 1,500 inmates.
Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. Partner Paul A. Garfield used the nursing expert and prison expert’s reports to prove that the jail was negligent in failing to properly staff the jail, train their employees, and maintain proper care of their inmates and after several years of litigation Paul A. Garfield won. He won our client’s family a $600,000 settlement for their pain and suffering after their son’s tragic death.
Medical Glossary
Asphyxia: Asphyxia is a serious condition that happens when a person’s body doesn’t get enough oxygen. It can occur when breathing is restricted or blocked, like when something is covering the mouth and nose. Asphyxia can lead to unconsciousness and, if not treated promptly, can be life-threatening.
