An Inmate is Bitten by a Police Dog and Dies of Septic Shock

A common practice in the jail system, per countless stories and reports, is for guards to ignore inmates who are pleading desperately for medical treatment. In a shocking case that occurred in a county jail outside Texas, a man who fled police was subdued and bitten by a K-9  dog. While he was in the jail, the dog bite became infected.

After three days, the inmate was unable to get out of his bed. the jail nurse determined that the man’s failure to get up was an implicit refusal of medication. She did not check any further for his condition. The nurses were convinced that he was faking an illness and exaggerating his condition and his supposed inability to get up.

On the fourth day, the man tried to get to treatment. He slid onto the floor but could move no further. The nurse wrote that he chose to refuse all treatment. Later that same day, it was determined that the inmate had become unresponsive in his cell. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

An autopsy was performed, and it was determined that the man had a deadly bacterial infection that began with the wounds caused by the dog bite. Due to the lack of treatment of the infection, the man developed sepsis and died of septic shock. Because the wounds resulted from actions that occurred during his arrest, his death was ruled a homicide. 

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 of this ongoing series.

Suggesting that a person or institution has been involved in misdeeds is never intended on this site. Each post is meant as a helpful resource of potential benefit to Texas county jail inmates.

–Guest Contributor