Alex Kuhnhausen
Alex Kuhnhausen, 25, was held at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla. His wife said he was funny, loved graffiti art and had a huge smile, and that he could recite the lyrics to any song in the car. According to medical records cited by InvestigateWest, a bacterial infection went unrecognized by clinical staff for days after he was moved into solitary confinement, while he was too weak to eat or drink. He was airlifted to a Spokane hospital, where he died on April 24, 2024, of sepsis and kidney failure, and his wife said she was not told he had been hospitalized until shortly before his death. His body was not autopsied, and officials privately questioned whether solitary confinement contributed to his death, as did a physician internally.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (neglect alleged). Prison clinical staff did not recognize a bacterial infection for days while he was too weak to eat or drink, and the emergency room doctor recorded sepsis and kidney failure as the cause of death.
Reported by: emergency room doctor at St. Mary Medical Center in Walla Walla, in medical records.