Federal judge dismisses lawsuit accusing Oklahoma County jail of negligence after inmate death

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit accusing the Oklahoma County jail staff of negligence in the suspected fentanyl-related death of detainee Kyle Steven Shaw.

The lawsuit was filed in September by Shaw's brother, Jeffrey Simmons. It was dismissed Friday, according to court records.

Shaw, who was in the jail after being arrested on a complaint of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in May 2021, was found dead in his cell on Feb. 13, 2022, when jailers went to get him and a cellmate so they could distribute breakfast trays to other detainees.

Jail officials said it appeared Shaw had died because of a suspected fentanyl overdose.

The lawsuit alleged the jail and its staff were responsible for Shaw's death, saying the smuggling of fentanyl was a known issue and jail staff didn't do enough to prevent that from happening. The lawsuit also alleged jail staff didn't immediately give Shaw Narcan to counteract the drug's influence.

The lawsuit noted at least one person who had worked at the jail had been arrested and charged with smuggling drugs into the building and that a multicounty grand jury report issued last year found two of the three major issues leading to Oklahoma County jail deaths included "inadequate controlled dangerous substance interdiction" and "the failure of detention officers to conduct proper site checks on inmates."

Federal investigation had also found issues with controlling smuggling, checking on inmates, lawsuit says

Other studies conducted by the U.S. Justice Department and the National Institute of Corrections identified similar issues, Simmons' lawsuit stated.

The lawsuit claimed Shaw's Eighth and 14th Amendment rights under the U.S. Constitution were violated and sought a minimum of $75,000, plus interest, attorneys fees and any other relief deemed just and equitable.

"Oklahoma County jail operators, employees, staff and other stakeholders — for years — did nothing to reasonably address this danger," the lawsuit stated.

An attorney representing Oklahoma County moved to dismiss Simmons' lawsuit, arguing Shaw could have avoided the fentanyl risks on his own.

Further, she argued that Simmons' petition failed to provide enough plausible information to show the lawsuit's claims were valid, failed to demonstrate Shaw's civil rights were violated, failed to demonstrate Shaw had been denied adequate medical care and failed to demonstrate his death was caused by deliberately indifferent policies used either by the jail's staff or the county.

In the ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Joe Heaton dismissed Simmons' lawsuit, but gave him 14 days to refile with additional information if he so desired.

"Plaintiff alleges there is a proliferation of illegal drugs in the Oklahoma County Jail, which has created a known, unreasonable risk of drug-induced harm to inmates," Heaton wrote.

While Simmons' lawsuit cited a media report of a jailer's arrest, the grand jury's report and the jail reviews by federal authorities as support for his case, Heaton ruled "these reports ... do not support an inference that jail personnel were deliberately indifferent to the particular risks from illegal drugs beyond those to which all jails are subject."

Shaw is among more than 40 detainees who have died at Oklahoma County's jail since July 2020 after its operation was taken over by the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority.

Beyond those deaths, the jail has experienced a hostage situation, failed health inspections and was targeted by the scathing grand jury report that called for control of the facility to be returned to the sheriff.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Judge dismisses inmate death lawsuit against Oklahoma County jail