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Family of Inmate who died from beating at County County Jail files suit. Tony Purnell who was serving time on a contempt of court charge was savagely beaten to death in mental ward of the jail. Suit alleges six inmates were crammed into one cell while understaffed guards did not properly respond to victim. Tom Dart's mismanagement and deliberate understaffing is about to cost millions more to taxpayers.
The family of a Cook County Jail inmate who was beaten to death by another inmate last year is suing the sheriff’s office, claiming the jail’s “dangerous” conditions and guards’ lack of action ultimately led to his death.
Inmate Tony Purnell, 42, was beaten to death in the jail in June 2014.
Leading up to his death, Purnell and five other inmates were housed in Cell 2107 in the jail’s medical facility, Cermak Hospital, where all were receiving mental health treatment, the suit stated. Despite the six inmates assigned to Cell 2107, there were only four beds, leaving “detainees with mental illness to sit, sleep, and lounge on the floor,” the suit stated.
Despite knowledge that Tony Purnell was severely injured and that he was struggling to breathe, none of the individual defendants rendered emergency medical attention to Tony Purnell for many minutes,” the suit said. Though Purnell was jailed for a non-violent offense, his attacker had a documented history of violence, the suit stated.
“The murder of Tony Purnell was tragic and criminal charges have been filed in connection with his death,” said Cara Smith, the jail’s executive director. “Our sympathies continue to be with his family, however we strenuously dispute the allegations in this complaint.”
The four-count suit alleges wrongful death and seeks at least $200,000 in damages.
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news-chicago/7/71/359975/suit-overcrowding-inattentive-guards-led-inmates-beating-death
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