Former inmate sues St. Clair County jail, says she was paralyzed by untreated injury

A former inmate has filed a federal lawsuit against the St. Clair County jail saying staff neglected her medical needs for days.

In a complaint filed on behalf of Lisa Lee Alice Brown, 48, on Oct. 23, her attorneys allege that after Brown fell out of her bunk bed on April 24, 2021, and fractured several vertebrae in her neck, she became permanently paralyzed. Deputies and staff at the jail are accused of failing to provide proper care and take her to a hospital despite repeated indications she could not move.

The lawsuit accuses the jail of two counts: deliberate indifference to medical needs and deliberate indifference by failing to train and supervise deputies. It also accuses CHS TX Inc, the medical provider for the jail which now operates under the name Yescare, of medical malpractice and ordinary or gross negligence.

The lawsuit also names 20 individuals as defendants. Among them are 15 officers with the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office, including Sheriff Mat King, and five employees of Corizon Health., including four registered nurses and a doctor.

Brown is being represented by Brian McKeen and Todd Schroeder, attorneys with McKeen & Associates in Detroit.

According to the complaint, Brown was incarcerated at the St. Clair County jail beginning April 20, 2021, after she was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

At around 2 a.m. on April 24, Brown's bunkmate at the jail informed staff Brown had fallen out of bed and hit her head.

A nurse at the jail reportedly examined Brown and found she was unable to move her arms and legs or sit up, even with assistance.

The lawsuit states Brown awoke believing she was in the hospital and told the nurse and deputies she could not move. According to the lawsuit, however, she was not taken to a hospital, and was left at the jail with no assistance offered to help her eat.

The complaint cites a report by Deputy Kimberly Spaulding written on April 24 at 6:21 p.m.

“Inmate placed on medical lockdown per nurse (Andrea) Sangster. Inmate is still in same position lying on the floor, has not eaten any breakfast," the note reportedly said.

The complaint goes on to document several times when Brown reportedly told nurses and deputies she was unable to move, with deputies at times moving her into position when they needed her to sit up or take a different position.

One of the deputies, Sgt. Donald Fleming, reported that he asked a nurse on April 26, 2021, if Brown would be taken to see a doctor. The complaint does not state whether he received an answer.

It was reportedly not until later that day that a staff member at the jail decided to contact a doctor. Nurse Allison LaFriniere, who works for CHS TX Inc. and is one of the defendants in the case, reported at 10:04 a.m. that Brown told her she had not been able to use the bathroom in three days, since before her fall.

The lawsuit states Lafriniere notified Dr. Imhotep Carter and was told to continue monitoring her.

At 7:11 p.m. LaFriniere reported she looked over a video recording of Brown and confirmed she had not moved for at least 48 hours. She then contacted the on-call physician, who told her Brown needed to go to a hospital immediately.

“Security asked if it could wait until the morning but I have insisted on her immediate transfer," the on-call physician reportedly wrote, according to the lawsuit.

Brown was taken to McLaren Port Huron where doctors discovered the breaks in her neck. She was later transferred to McLaren Macomb, where she underwent two surgeries.

"Unfortunately, she has permanent neurological damage and has been diagnosed with paralysis," the lawsuit states. "She is unable to use her left hand and it remains in a claw-like position. She has lost much of the function of her left leg, and she has decreased sensation from the chest down to her toes. Ms. Brown requires the use of a wheelchair for medium to long distances, and for short distances, she needs a cane or a walker."

McKeen said he considered the case one of the worst examples of negligence he'd seen in 30 years as an attorney.

"They just chose to ignore her complaints and assumed she was fainting," McKeen said. "It's inhumane to leave someone in that condition."

The lawsuit notes at least 13 deputies at the jail had contact with Brown and saw she could not move, but did not attempt to take her to a hospital for examination, and accuses the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office of failing to adequately train its deputies. It also states the medical staff should have had Brown hospitalized on the morning of April 24, 2021, immediately after her fall was discovered.

"Brown was exhibiting signs of injury that any reasonable and prudent individual would understand required immediate medical attention," Brown's attorneys wrote in the complaint. "Further, the type of injury and/or signs and symptoms of Brown’s injuries are within the realm of common knowledge and experience as being the kind of injury and/or sign and symptoms of injury that required immediate medical attention."

McKeen added in an interview that the deputies who moved Brown after he injury may have contributed to her injury.

The complaint filing includes an affidavit by Stephen Furman, a registered nurse from Virginia, in which Furman states he had examined the evidence and found Brown should not have been placed on a top bunk because she has Raynaud Syndrome, a condition that can cause numbness and cut off blood flow to a person's fingers, toes and other extremities.

"Had this fall been avoided, or timely treatment received, Lisa would have the full use of the left side of her body," Furman wrote. "If not for the negligence of Lisa's healthcare providers, the left side of her body would not have sustained injuries."

Under the law each of the four counts against the county would require a minimum payment of $75,000 each, though McKeen said he would be requesting an amount "in fair excess of that."

Erika Hyrnyk, public information officer for the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office, said the sheriff's office would not comment on the case. Schroeder did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Attorney Todd Shoudy, who is representing St. Clair County in the lawsuit, said responsibility for Brown's injuries should fall on the medical staff, not the deputies.

"Our deputies defer to the opinions of the medical staff in the jail," Shoudy said.

Shoudy said the defendants have not yet been served in the lawsuit, so no response has been issued in court.

No attorney was listed for CHS TX Inc. in court records. Brian Richtarcik, who has represented the company in past cases, did not return a request for comment.

Corizon Health, the company which provided medical care in St. Clair County jail and several other incarceration facilities nationwide, has faced multiple lawsuits for malpractice in recent years.

In 2022 the company was ordered to pay $6.4 million to the family of Wade Jones after he died in the Kent County Jail due to complications from alcohol withdrawal.

Corizon Health declared bankruptcy in 2023, according to a USA Today report in September, and split into two companies: CHS TX, which inherited most of Corizon's assets and employees. The other company, Tehum Care Services, was given most of the company's debts and filed for bankruptcy.

Tehum Care Services' bankruptcy has been challenged by attorneys representing plaintiffs in multiple lawsuits against Corizon.

Brown's case lists CHS TX, the company which inherited Corizon's assets, as the defendant.

Contact Johnathan Hogan at jhogan@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Former inmate sues St. Clair County jail paralyzing neck injury