The grand jury also ended a nine-month investigation by calling for wholesale changes in health care, staffing and surveillance at the jail, offering 20 recommendations to "prevent another unnecessary death."
The jail is part of the state Department of Juvenile Justice.
>snip<
The grand jury noted in frustration that the state agency is immune to criminal indictments. Miami-Dade State Attorney, whose office advised the grand jury, said, "It was just a senseless, needless, pitifully agonizing death."
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/florida/MGABN1XJYPD.html---------------------------------------
Jailed teen's death leads to charges
Declaring their actions callous and ''outrageous,'' a grand jury Tuesday charged two nurses with manslaughter and third-degree murder for ignoring the desperate pleas of a dying teenager at the Miami-Dade juvenile lockup.
>snip<
links to
» Read the grand jury indictment
» Read the full report from the grand jury
» Read the response from DJJ
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/------------------------
Can't get the pdf reports to open, but I'm so angry right now, it's probably for the best.
------------------------
Omar Paisley's Mother Speaks To Barreiro's Committee
Date Published: September 10, 2003
"I want justice." This was the voice of Omar Paisley's mother, speaking to lawmakers at the first public hearing of the House Select Committee on Juvenile Detention facilities on Wednesday, September 10th at the Miami-Dade County Commission Chambers.
>snip<
Chaired by Representative Gustavo Barreiro (R-Miami), the Select Committee is charged with monitoring any and all investigations related to the death of Omar Paisley, a 17-year-old youth, who was left pleading and screaming for help while sprawled on the floor of his Miami-Dade detention cell for three agonizing days until, finally…his appendix burst…and he died.
After hearing testimony from a number of local, state and national experts the Select Committee motioned for DJJ Secretary Bill Bankhead to take two immediate actions:
1) Suspend Victor Davidson, the Asst. Superintendent of Miami-Dade's detention facility, until the investigation into Omar's death is completed; and,
2) Change DJJ written policy and procedures regarding staff members to allow them to call 911 if and when they believe a youth in custody needs emergency medical attention.
According to follow-up coverage in the Miami Herald, Secretary Bankhead announced in response that DJJ would not suspend Asst. Superintendent Davidson, but would instead reassign him to an unspecified, less sensitive job. Secretary Bankhead also pledged to post notices throughout the state's 25 detention centers authorizing all corrections officers to call 911 when necessary.
much more:
http://www.iamforkids.org/newsdata/view_ind/531--------------------------
'Isolated' cases all too common
09/11/03
>snip<
Three years before Omar's pleas were ignored by guards and nurses, a pregnant teenager at the center complained to a guard she was in extreme pain. At the time, the teen, records show, was ``bleeding heavily.''
In response, the guard allegedly chastised the girl for getting pregnant and then waited three hours before notifying a supervisor.
When the supervisor arrived at the teen's cell, she told the girl to elevate her legs. ''There is nothing in the log to indicate
contacted medical personnel to inform them of the situation,'' according to the records.
Nearly 12 hours passed before the teenage girl was finally seen by the detention center's medical staff, which recommended she be transferred immediately to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Doctors at Jackson determined the teen had suffered a miscarriage.
Perhaps the most troubling aspect of this April 2000 incident is that neither the guard nor the supervisor was disciplined. They did nothing as this girl lay in her bed, bleeding and in pain, scared about her pregnancy, and as far as the department was concerned there was nothing particularly grievous in their actions.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/columnists/jim_defede/6741147.htm
----------------------
MIAMI -- Mildewed sheets and pillows. Blood-stained towels. Roaches on the floor. Lack of medical care.
These were some of the conditions inside a Miami juvenile detention center where a 17-year-old boy died after spending three days writhing in pain without treatment for a ruptured appendix, according to two cell mates of the dead teen.
>snip<
The panel heard about several cases where medical care was denied or delayed for teen inmates at state juvenile detention centers.
http://www.staugustine.com/stories/091103/sta_1796269.shtml
-------------------------
According to testimony at a public hearing, guards at the Miami center were unable or unwilling to call for emergency help for Omar Paisley because they were forbidden to leave their posts. A Miami grand jury is investigating Paisley's June death.
A month earlier, a teen placed at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center died after fighting with another boy. Juvenile Justice officials acknowledged employees on duty violated a number of state policies, including failure to adequately supervise the youths.
more problems
--------------------------
There's much more out there, but I need to walk away for a little while before my head explodes.
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