Madelyn Linsenmeir
Madelyn Linsenmeir, 30, was a mother from Vermont whose family remembers her as a loving mother, sister and friend, and who wrote candidly about her struggle with opioid addiction. She was held at the Western Massachusetts Regional Women's Correctional Center in Hampden County, where her family says she repeatedly told staff she was in severe pain and needed medical help. She was taken to a hospital on October 4, 2018, and died there on October 7 of an infected heart valve, endocarditis. Her family and the ACLU of Massachusetts say her care was denied and that her death was preventable; the Hampden County Sheriff's Department said it cannot comment on a specific death, and the Springfield City Council has approved a $900,000 settlement with the family that does not cover the sheriff's office.
Cause of death, as reported: Died from neglect by staff (disputed). Her family and the ACLU of Massachusetts say she repeatedly reported severe pain and was denied medical care for days, while she died of an untreated heart infection (endocarditis) after being hospitalized on October 4, 2018; the Hampden County Sheriff's Department has said it cannot comment on a specific death.
Reported by: Family and the ACLU of Massachusetts lawsuit (family or their lawyers); Hampden County Sheriff's Department (the agency that held her).
Lawsuit: Her family sued the city of Springfield and the Hampden County Sheriff's Department over her death, and the Springfield City Council approved a $900,000 settlement with the family.
News reports (7)
- Madelyn Linsenmeir's family has a right to know how she died
- Linsenmeir v. City of Springfield and Estate of Madelyn E. Linsenmeir v. City of Springfield
- Officers ignored opioid-addicted inmate's cries for help before death, lawsuit says - ABC News
- Woman who begged for medical help was told it was her 'fault' for using drugs, suit says
- Massachusetts city is set to settle a lawsuit in the death of an opioid-addicted woman
- Springfield agrees to $900,000 settlement for death of a 30-year-old woman in custody
- Final settlement reached in lawsuit against Hampden County Sheriff for the death of Madelyn Linsenmeir