Justin Roy Meno
Justin Roy Meno was 22 when he died in September 2017, after he had been held in the maximum security unit (Post 6) of Guam's Department of Corrections. Internal documents say he was assaulted there in March 2017 and was found bound, with a rag in his mouth, unconscious and barely breathing when staff reached him, and he remained hospitalized until he died. The medical examiner, Dr. Aurelio Espinola, attributed the death to a benign tumor in his throat. His sister, Brianna Lynn Meno, has sued the government, the Department of Corrections and a former prison director, saying negligence and the assault caused his death. In 2019 the Attorney General's office asked the court to dismiss the claims against the government and the Department of Corrections, and the judge has yet to decide.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed; neglect alleged). The medical examiner attributed the death to a benign throat tumor, but his sister's federal lawsuit says negligence and an assault in the maximum security unit caused it, and says DOC officials failed to follow proper procedures.
Reported by: Guam Department of Corrections (the agency that held him); Dr. Aurelio Espinola, medical examiner (medical examiner or coroner); Brianna Lynn Meno, his sister, in a federal lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His sister sued the Guam Department of Corrections, a former DOC director and the government, alleging negligence and that the assault caused his death, and no payment has been reported.