Niccole Wetherell
Niccole Wetherell, 40, was described in a state inspector general report as a peer mentor who encouraged hope among other women held at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women in York. She died of cervical cancer in February 2021 at the prison's medical unit, according to the Nebraska Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System. The report said she had gone nine years between pap smears before a 2019 exam found advanced cancer, and that her death might have been prevented with regular preventive exams. The report also found that the Department of Corrections lacks electronic health records to track routine care, despite a 2015 state law requiring them, and recommended that facilities add such tracking.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (neglect alleged). The Nebraska Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System reported that she died of cervical cancer and that her death might have been prevented, because she went nine years without a pap smear and Nebraska corrections did not track preventive and chronic care.
Reported by: Nebraska Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System (outside investigators).