Lucas Bellamy
Lucas Bellamy was the son of Lou Bellamy, founder of the Penumbra Theatre in St. Paul, and a devoted father to his young son. His sister Sarah described him as a beautiful soul with a sensitive heart, and family and friends remember his charisma, acting talent and willingness to help others. He died in July 2022 at the Hennepin County Jail, three days after he was booked there. His family's federal lawsuit says he vomited, suffered severe abdominal pain and repeatedly asked to be taken to a hospital, but that staff gave him anti-nausea medication and did not send him back for care. An autopsy found that a perforated small intestine caused his death, and the family says jail staff ignored his pleas for help. In November 2024 Hennepin County agreed to pay $3.4 million to settle the case, and the county said it remains committed to the dignity of people in its care.
Cause of death, as reported: Died from neglect by staff (disputed). The family's federal lawsuit says jail staff and medical providers ignored his repeated pleas for hospital care while he suffered for days from a perforated bowel, and the autopsy attributed his death to a perforated small intestine with infection or peritonitis.
Reported by: autopsy; family and their attorney Jeff Storms, in a federal lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His family sued Hennepin County and Hennepin Healthcare in federal court, and the county agreed to pay $3.4 million to settle the case.
Sources (15)
- Family of man who died in Hennepin County Jail files federal lawsuit
- Suit: Son of Penumbra’s Louis Bellamy begged for help while in severe pain but was left to die in jail
- Family sues Hennepin Co. Jail over Lucas Bellamy's death, saying he "begged for medical care"
- Inmate seen crawling on the floor, begging for help was given antacid and put back in cell day before death: suit
- GRAPHIC: Video shows inmate allegedly ‘begged’ for medical care, family sues jail over his death
- Lawsuit filed in 2022 Hennepin County jail death - FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul
- Man died slowly in Minn. jail cell ‘begging’ for medical care, suit says
- Minnesota family sues jail over son’s death in custody
- In Minnesota, jail deaths spiked last year despite new protections
- Family of inmate who died in Hennepin County Jail wins $3.4 million settlement
- Hennepin County to pay $3.4 million to the family of Lucas Bellamy following his jail death
- Hennepin County pays $3.4 million to settle lawsuit for wrongful death of jail inmate Lucas Bellamy
- Minn. county to pay $3.4M to end lawsuit over detainee’s 2022 death
- Hennepin County will pay $3.4 million to family of man who died in jail
- Inmate was left to die in cell in ‘real-life nightmare,’ suit says. Family wins millions