In the Death of Prisoner Anthony Dewayne Huff, an Oklahoma Sheriff and 3 Others are Charged with First-Degree Manslaughter
On Wednesday, February 14, 2018, a sheriff in Oklahoma plus three other people were charged with first-degree manslaughter in connection with the 2016 custodial death of 58-year-old Anthony Dewayne Huff. The former jail administrator and two jailers were charged, along with the sheriff. Initially, the same four people were charged with second-degree manslaughter. Those charges were dismissed so that these new charges could be filed.
On June 4, 2016, Huff was arrested and held at the Garfield County Jail in Enid, Oklahoma. According to investigators, on June 6, jail staff placed Huff in a restraint chair. He remained in the chair through June 8, when he was found unresponsive. He was pronounced dead later that day.
In a press release from Mike Hunter, Oklahoma Attorney General, Huff was not provided with proper amounts of water, food, or medical treatment for known illnesses he suffered from during his time in the chair. The June 9, 2016, autopsy revealed that Huff died of natural causes. The probable cause of death was chronic alcoholism caused by a compulsive condition from a prior disease.
The federal lawsuit that was filed in 2017 alleged that the jail employees were guilty of negligence because Huff’s medical conditions identified in previous incarcerations should have been known. Huff had taken medication for hypertension, heart disease, depression, as well as other conditions. The lawsuit also says Huff was placed in the restraint chair after hallucinating and exhibiting delusions. There had not been a medical recommendation to use the chair. In addition, the lawsuit claims, the jail staff did not regularly check Huff’s blood pressure, administer his blood pressure medication, or offer him hydration at least every two hours.
It was required that jail staff check on Huff every 15 minutes, according to the lawsuit, but the staff allegedly did not check on him in compliance with jail policy.
The new charges allege that the four jail employees willfully, unlawfully, feloniously and intentionally, without a premeditated design, caused Huff’s death.
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–Guest Contributor
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