Milam County, Texas, Officials and Jail Staff are Sued by Former Prisoner John Robertson, who Allegedly Became Partially Paralyzed after Alleged Abuses
A resident of Milam County and former prisoner in Milam County Jail in Cameron, Texas, John L. Robertson, filed a federal lawsuit against several Milam County officials and jail employees on April 2, 2018. A total of ten individuals are named in the lawsuit, in connection with 2016 and 2017 experiences he had in Milam County Jail. The events began after he voluntarily went there in July 2016 to be transferred to a drug treatment facility.
According to Robertson, on July 14, 2016, he advised some younger inmates to go out to the recreation yard, as they had been instructed; and a jailer cursed at him for it. When the prisoners returned from the yard, Robertson said he was targeted for retaliation by the same jailer. He was placed in a new cell, and said jailer climbed on his back on his knees and dropped his full body weight onto Robertson several times and also turned the prisoner’s head to one side, which broke one of his teeth when the weight was then placed on his head.
After the alleged prisoner abuse, Robertson says he was denied requested medical treatment. Three jailers went back into his cell and one of them pointed an electronic weapon in his face. Robertson was then placed in an unsanitary padded cell and stripped, with the jailers claiming he was suicidal. The food was sent through a portal stained with feces, he said, and therefore, he couldn’t eat. Plus, he was given a damp, too-small smock that smelled of urine.
Two days later, Robertson could no longer move his legs. Being partially paralyzed, he also lost control of bodily functions. An on-duty nurse accused him of faking it. The next shift had him transported to Scott & White Medical Center in Temple. There a physician said Robertson was partially paralyzed, due to swelling from injuries caused by pressure to his spinal cord. For two weeks he was paralyzed. Neurosurgery and physical rehabilitation became necessary, as a result of injuries that allegedly occurred in the Milam County Jail.
Problems continued, including further instances of alleged retaliation from jail officials and staff. Robertson was unable to pay child support because of his physical condition; for that reason, he was again arrested on June 10, 2017. He requested transfer to a different facility, but the requested was denied and further alleged injustices and instances of abuse occurred.
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