William Blanscet Jr.
William Blanscet Jr., 53, died in 2023 while held at Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem. His mother, Janet Blanscet, of California, filed a $4 million wrongful death lawsuit in Marion County Circuit Court against the Oregon Department of Corrections and a former prison chief medical officer. The lawsuit says that months of hip pain went without adequate imaging and that his prostate cancer was not diagnosed for nearly a year. The Department of Corrections declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (disputed; neglect alleged). His mother's wrongful death lawsuit says prison medical staff failed to order adequate imaging for months of hip pain, delaying diagnosis of his advanced prostate cancer for nearly a year; the Oregon Department of Corrections declined to comment on the suit.
Reported by: his mother, Janet Blanscet, through a wrongful death lawsuit against the Oregon Department of Corrections (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His mother sued the Oregon Department of Corrections and a former prison chief medical officer in Marion County Circuit Court over his death, seeking $4 million; no settlement or award is reported.