Tampa Jail & Prison Medical Neglect Lawyer

If you are in jail or prison, you have a right to proper medical care. Across Florida, our jails and prisons are responsible for providing incarcerated persons with adequate medical care. Medical neglect in jail or prison can cause serious injury, permanent disability, or wrongful death. An experienced Tampa jail & prison medical neglect lawyer from Spangenberg, Shibley & Liber can review your case and help you understand your rights. 

Spangenberg, Shibley & Liber: Trusted Counsel for Challenging Times

Founded in 1946, Spangenberg Shibley & Liber advocates for those injured by negligence and civil rights violations. Our firm has recovered over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements on behalf of families who have suffered catastrophic injuries, wrongful death, or the negligence of others. However, past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is different and must be evaluated on its own merits.

Our attorneys have experience litigating cases that require extensive professional support and highly technical legal analysis. Spangenberg Shibley & Liber has the resources and experience to investigate claims of medical neglect in jail and prison settings. Whether you’re being held at Falkenburg Road Jail or at the nearby Zephyrhills Correctional Institution, when you partner with us, you get a team focused on honesty, trust, and hard work.

What Is Jail and Prison Medical Neglect? 

In Florida, at the end of 2023, there were approximately 87,200 prisoners in the state. This was a 3% increase from the previous year. This made the prison rate 382 per 100,000 residents, with many needing medical attention at some point in their time of incarceration. 

In jail or prison, medical neglect can occur when a correctional official or medical provider fails to provide appropriate medical care to someone who is in jail or prison and needs that medical care, and that individual suffers harm that could have been avoided. 

This is different from a situation where the incarcerated person disagrees with the treatment being recommended or offered by the jail or prison healthcare provider. Most cases of jail or prison medical neglect involve the failure to treat a serious medical need, unreasonable delay in medical care, disregard of obvious symptoms, or the outright denial of medically indicated care. 

Across the Sunshine State, correctional facilities have a duty to provide incarcerated people with access to adequate medical evaluation and treatment for injuries, illnesses, and emergencies. These also include mental health conditions or any other medical situation that may arise during their time of incarceration. 

Just because something goes wrong during a person’s medical treatment or medical evaluation, it does not necessarily mean that medical neglect occurred. Yet, if an inmate sustains significant injury because medical staff or jailers knew about and then ignored or downplayed their documented health issues, legal recourse might be possible.

Examples of Medical Neglect in Jail and Prisons

Medical neglect may take a variety of forms. In some cases, a person’s medical treatment is entirely denied. In other situations, injuries may be caused by a series of delays or a lack of response to a medical condition. Examples of medical neglect may include:

• Ignoring a person’s complaints of pain, chest discomfort, or stroke symptoms 
• Delaying emergency treatment
• Refusing to diagnose serious situations, such as an infection
• Inadequate medical care for conditions like diabetes or heart disease 
• Refusing necessary medication
• Refusing to perform a mental health assessment
• Failing to respond to a serious incident like a seizure or heart attack
• Ignoring signs of withdrawal from alcohol or controlled substances

Relatively brief delays in treatment may cause permanent injury when serious medical conditions are left untreated.

Your Constitutional Right to Medical Care

The Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. Sometimes, medical neglect can be classified as cruel and unusual punishment.

A correctional official may violate a person’s constitutional rights by exhibiting deliberate indifference to a serious medical need. These claims do not focus on whether a defendant acted intentionally. They are instead based on the defendant’s knowledge of a substantial risk of serious harm. 

Individuals in jail awaiting trial are protected under the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Generally speaking, those awaiting trial possess the same right to constitutionally appropriate medical treatment as convicted inmates while under correctional supervision. In practice, the legal standards are slightly different, but a correctional facility cannot ignore a person’s serious medical condition simply because that person is in jail or prison. 

Who May Be Liable for Jail and Prison Medical Neglect?

Determining responsibility for medical neglect generally calls for a detailed look at the people and entities managing patient care at a correctional institution. Jail medical neglect may not always be the responsibility of a single physician or nurse. Responsible parties can include:

• Correctional officers
• Wardens
• Administrators
• Prison officials
• Mental health professionals
• Healthcare providers
• Government entities

Correctional facilities can be legally responsible for their own policies as well as the conduct of individual employees. Jail medical neglect claims may also arise from organizational or systemic problems that have not been adequately addressed. Systemic problems like chronic understaffing and inadequate training may all contribute to medical neglect and cause preventable injuries. 

It’s worth discussing your treatment with a knowledgeable attorney. Efforts to identify every potentially responsible party are often a critical part of investigating medical neglect in jail and prison cases and determining the full extent of potential legal remedies. 

Common Injuries and Medical Conditions Associated With Medical Neglect

Untreated medical conditions and delays in medical care can quickly become life-threatening within a jail or prison. Diagnostic and treatment delays can allow otherwise manageable conditions to progress into permanent disabilities or fatal complications. These issues can include:

• Sepsis
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Seizures
• Kidney failure
• Broken bones
• Infections
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Internal bleeding

Mental health conditions are also serious medical needs that require appropriate evaluation and treatment. For example, psychiatric breaks and suicide attempts can have devastating consequences for an individual’s well-being and safety as well as that of their family members and friends. 

Because jails and prisons exercise a high level of control over incarcerated individuals and their access to medical care, even brief delays in obtaining treatment may have particularly serious consequences when compared with situations where an individual is free to seek care independently.

Hire a Jail & Prison Medical Neglect Lawyer

If you hire a jail & prison medical neglect lawyer, they can investigate the complex constitutional and medical questions that often arise in these cases. 

For example, a jail & prison medical neglect attorney can:

• Explain prison medical neglect laws
• Acquire medical and correctional records
• Preserve evidence
• Interview witnesses
• Consult medical professionals
• Identify the parties at fault
• Determine whether your federal rights have been violated 

Correctional facilities have a duty to provide medical care that meets constitutional standards. When a duty of care is breached and causes preventable harm, legal action allows victims to hold the responsible parties accountable and pursue compensation for their losses. However, it can be challenging to build a strong case alone. When you hire a lawyer, they can build a compelling case on your behalf.

FAQs

Q: Can a Family Member File a Claim if an Incarcerated Loved One Dies From Medical Neglect?

A: In some cases, members of the family who survive can bring a wrongful death or civil rights claim if a loved one dies as a result of constitutionally inadequate medical care in jail or prison. The type of claim available, the family members who can bring the claim, and the damages that may be available depend on the facts of the case and the applicable federal and state law. A legal professional’s review can reveal what recourse you might have.

Q: Does a Jail or Prison Have to Provide Prescription Medications?

A: Jails and prisons generally have a duty to provide medically necessary treatment to those in their custody, and this can require the provision of prescription medications in appropriate circumstances. While medical providers have medical judgment in determining what treatment is necessary and appropriate, they generally cannot be deliberately indifferent to a serious medical need or unreasonably refuse to provide care that is needed. 

Q: What Is the Difference Between Medical Malpractice and Jail Medical Neglect?

A: Medical malpractice typically refers to negligent medical care provided in a hospital, clinic, or similar setting. Jail and prison medical neglect can include medical malpractice, but can also include violations of a prisoner’s constitutional rights where correctional officials or medical providers are deliberately indifferent to the prisoner’s serious medical needs. Some cases may involve both medical malpractice and civil rights violations. 

Q: What Types of Compensation May Be Available in a Jail Medical Neglect Case?

A: Compensation, covering things like medical bills, pain and suffering, lasting disabilities, emotional anguish, lost income potential, or even wrongful death, might be awarded depending on the specifics of the situation and governing laws. Some cases may also allow for relief for the violation of a prisoner’s constitutional rights. 

The type and amount of damages available in a case depends on the facts and circumstances of the case, the injuries suffered, and the legal claims that are brought. 

Contact Spangenberg Shibley & Liber Today

If you or a loved one suffered medical neglect in jail or prison and suffered injury as a result, you may be able to recover compensation from the responsible party. Contact Spangenberg Shibley & Liber for more information.