Inmate was left to die in cell in ‘real-life nightmare,’ suit says. Family wins millions
.jpg "A Minnesota man’s family was awarded a $3.4 million settlement after a lawsuit said jail staff failed to provide medical care to the man, leading to his death.")
The family of a Minnesota man was awarded millions in a wrongful death lawsuit, according to court records.
On July 18, 2022, Lucas Bellamy was arrested and taken to the Hennepin County Adult Detention Center, according to a lawsuit filed Jan. 23 in U.S. District Court against several people, Hennepin Healthcare System and Hennepin County.
During intake, Bellamy told the staff he ingested a bag of drugs, according to the lawsuit. He was taken to an emergency room where he was monitored for several hours until hospital staff determined he was stable, the lawsuit said.
Bellamy was returned to the jail, where he would die within the next few days, according to the lawsuit.
“He endured a real-life nightmare,” the court document said.
Once back at the jail, Bellamy began to develop new symptoms. Hospital staff ordered that if any new symptoms occurred, he should be taken back to the hospital, according to the lawsuit. But the court document said that didn’t happen.
On July 20, Bellamy began vomiting in his general population bunk, the lawsuit said. He was then moved into his own cell.
His condition “worsened in a drastic and obvious fashion,” the lawsuit said. He wasn’t eating and was complaining of stomach pain, according to the court document.
“Lucas was in such severe and obvious pain that it took him 45 seconds to crawl out of his cell on his hands and knees after (the guard) opened the cell door,” the lawsuit said.
Bellamy pleaded to be taken to a hospital multiple times between July 20 and July 21, the lawsuit said. Jail staff observed him hunched over on the floor in a fetal position, vomiting and crying in pain, according to the lawsuit.
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One nurse wrote in her chart that “(Bellamy) was kneeling while his head is on the floor and crying when checked. (Bellamy) verbalized ‘I need to go the hospital, please help me,’” the lawsuit said.
Surveillance footage showed Bellamy hunching over multiple times while trying to stand and sit at a table. At one point, he collapsed to the ground, the lawsuit said.
“As (the guard) closed Lucas back in his cell, (the guard) observed that Lucas had collapsed back onto the floor into fetal position but simply walked away and left him on the floor in severe and obvious pain,” the lawsuit said.
On the morning of July 21, staff checked on Bellamy who “crawled out of his cell in extreme pain on his hands and knees,” according to the court document.
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One nurse gave him medicine for his stomach pain, but he spilled it on the floor because of his pain and wasn’t given any more, the lawsuit said.
Bellamy was never taken to a hospital again, the lawsuit said. At 12:30 p.m., he was found face down in his cell, and at 1:17 p.m. he was pronounced dead, according to the lawsuit.
“We join our community in sharing our deepest condolences to the family for the loss of their loved one. We hold steadfast in our commitment to delivering high quality care, creating a safe and healing environment for everyone,” Hennepin Healthcare, one of the defendants named in the lawsuit, told McClatchy News on Nov. 12 in an email.
“The death of Mr. Bellamy was a tragedy. Our condolences go out to his family and to all those affected by his death. While this litigation has reached a resolution, we remain committed to serving all people under our care with dignity and respect,” a Hennepin County representative, another defendant in the lawsuit, told McClatchy News in an email Nov. 12.
Bellamy’s cause of death was peritonitis due to a duodenal perforation, which the lawsuit said was “an infection because there was a hole in his small intestine.”
“This is an easily treatable problem when timely addressed, and Lucas would have lived if any of the Defendant Nurses, (guard), or others from the County or Hennepin Healthcare would have provided Lucas with timely and proper medical care rather than ignore his serious medical needs,” the court document said.
The family was awarded $3.4 million in the wrongful death case, according to documents filed Nov. 11 in U.S. District Court.
Hennepin County is home to Minneapolis.
This story was originally published November 12, 2024 at 2:42 PM with the headline "Inmate was left to die in cell in ‘real-life nightmare,’ suit says. Family wins millions."
