Arrr! A poor soul bein' sent home, but alas! His heart be missin'! What madness be this, mateys?
2023-12-11
Arrr! In the land of Alabama, the kin of scurvy dog Brandon Dotson be demandin' justice! The rascal met his fate in prison, only to be sent back to his kin in a putrid state, his heart plundered! Aye, a lawsuit be brewin' in these treacherous waters!
The family of an Alabama inmate, Brandon Dotson, who died in prison, has filed a federal lawsuit after his severely decomposed body was delivered to them. The family noticed bruising and swelling on his body, and his heart was found to be missing during an independent autopsy. They are seeking the immediate return of Dotson's heart for examination and proper burial. Dotson had served 19 years of a 99-year sentence for burglary and parole violation.The lawsuit alleges violations of the 8th and 14th Amendments, indifference to Dotson's medical needs and safety, a cover-up of deliberate indifference, interference with the family's right of burial, mishandling of a corpse, emotional distress, failure to notify next of kin, and wrongful death. It also claims that prison staff moved Dotson to general population despite threats of violence, allowing him easy access to drugs and leaving him vulnerable to harm in an understaffed and overcrowded facility.
The defendants in the lawsuit include the Alabama Department of Corrections, the warden of the correctional facility, the director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, unnamed prison employees, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine. The lawsuit also references the alleged history of the Alabama DOC providing organs and tissues to medical students.
The family is requesting the return of Dotson's heart, a jury trial, and an injunction against the director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences and the commissioner of the Alabama DOC. They believe that these officials could have prevented the constitutional violations that occurred and ensured that the family was properly informed about Dotson's death. The family's lawyer has criticized the ADOC for failing to keep inmates safe and for their lack of transparency in this case.