Jonathan Magbie
Jonathan Magbie was 27 and had been paralyzed from the neck down since a childhood injury. He relied on a tracheotomy tube and medical equipment to breathe. While held at the Central Detention Facility in Washington, D.C., he developed pneumonia, and the ACLU says it was never properly treated; he was moved several times between the jail, a hospital and a treatment facility. He died at a hospital on September 24, 2004, after a respiratory crisis. The ACLU says jail and hospital officials failed to provide proper care, and his mother, Mary Scott, brought a wrongful death suit that led to a District settlement including policy changes for prisoners with severe medical needs.
Cause of death, as reported: Died from neglect by staff (disputed). The ACLU, citing a wrongful death lawsuit filed for his mother, says D.C. Central Detention Facility staff failed to properly treat his pneumonia, leaving him to die of an acute respiratory crisis.
Reported by: ACLU (advocates); his mother's wrongful death lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His mother, Mary Scott, sued over his death, and the District agreed to a settlement that includes policy changes for prisoners with severe medical needs.