Family of Cumberland corrections officer who died in pandemic sues county, former wardens
BRIDGETON — The family of a Cumberland County corrections officer who died from COVID-19 last year, after falling ill during his shift, is following through on its warning to the county to expect a wrongful death lawsuit.
A complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Camden on Monday names as defendants the county government along with former Warden Richard Smith and former Deputy Warden Charles Warren.
Smith and Warren, who also was warden for a period in 2021, are being sued as individuals as well as county officials.
Corrections Officer Luis E. “Ricky” Andujar died at his home on Jan. 22, 2021. Andujar, a 13-year veteran, was 42 and had four children.
According to the lawsuit, Andujar’s death resulted from a violation of his civil rights by the county.
More:Federal jury finds Vineland police didn't violate man's rights in 2015 death
More:Cumberland faces wrongful death action in corrections officer's death from COVID-19
The 27-page complaint states that Andujar fell ill during his shift on Jan. 22, 2021 and asked supervisors to leave. But it allegedly took repeated requests before supervisors agreed to dismiss him. During that time, supervisors allegedly “implicitly and explicitly discouraged” him from raising further requests.
Family attorney Stuart Alterman said Wednesday that supervisors had threatened to fire Andujar if he left without permission. The refusals to allow Andujar to leave made him “a de facto inmate,” the lawsuit states.
County Solicitor John Carr declined comment on the lawsuit. The county has not been formally served with the lawsuit, which was filed Oct. 31 with Judge Noel Hillman.
The officer’s family in April 2021 had filed a tort notice with the county, advising a wrongful death lawsuit was contemplated. The tort notice allegations echo those in the filing.
Smith resigned as warden effective Jan. 8, 2021, but it was in his time as warden that the jail implemented its first COVID-19 safety measures. The county since has modified and intensified its COVID-19 precautions thanks to another federal lawsuit.
Warren was promoted from deputy warden, under Smith, to warden in February 2021. He resigned as warden in September 2021.
The lawsuit alleges a dozen violations of rights guaranteed both by law and under the U.S. Constitution and the New Jersey Constitution, including protection from “cruel and unusual punishment.” It requests unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, legal and court fees, and a jury trial.
Smith and Warren also are key figures in an older, separate federal case brought by jail inmates. In the inmate suit, their attorneys allege the jail failed to provide basic protections against COVID-19 exposure. One inmate did die from the disease, according to testimony.
Smith no longer is a defendant in that matter, though Warren is.
In a January 2021 filing in that case, plaintiff attorneys noted viruses are not stopped by steel bars.
“Because Defendants have not taken adequate measures to control the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19, an ongoing crisis at the Cumberland Jail continues to threaten the lives of the inmates, the health and safety staff (nurses and doctors), correctional officers, and other staff living and working at the Cumberland Jail,” plaintiff attorneys wrote.
Inmates also claim that jail leadership retaliated against them during the litigation, which has not concluded. That case also is in Hillman’s court.
Andujar was born in Vineland and grew up and went through school in neighboring Buena Borough in Atlantic County. He is buried in Our Ladies of Victories Cemetery in Landisville.
His estate administrators are Michell Kincaide and Teresa E. Vasquez, who are the mothers of his children.
Andujar’s name is one of 28 on a permanent memorial in Trenton to law enforcement members who died during the COVID-19 pandemic. The memorial was unveiled in October 2021 at the Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex.
His passing also was reported in a feature story in New Jersey Cops Magazine.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey more than 30 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
Have a tip? Reach out at jsmith@thedailyjournal.com. Help support local journalism with a subscription.
This article originally appeared on Vineland Daily Journal: Cumberland County faces lawsuit over jail officer's COVID death
