Federal lawsuit filed against Richland County Jail medical staff over Bucyrus man's death

When Zachary Marshall first came into the Richland County Jail shortly after midnight Dec. 5, 2021, he complained he felt sick and showed signs of infection that only worsened over time. But a recently filed federal lawsuit alleges his condition was met with "deliberate indifference" by several medical staff members of the Richland County Jail.

Seven days later, on Dec. 12, 2021, Marshall, 35, of Bucyrus, showed signs of an altered mental status. A sergeant at the jail tried to talk to Marshall and he acted very confused, according to the lawsuit filed Nov. 27. A nurse examined him and also noticed his altered mental state and that he was not eating or drinking. He was placed in medical segregation, but no diagnostic workup or other appropriate follow-up care was provided to determine or treat the cause of his altered mental status.

On Dec. 16, 2021, a police lieutenant who was covering remote arraignments encountered Marshall by videoconference. He noticed that Marshall was not acting right, was confused and not understanding what was going on. The arraignment was rescheduled for that reason. The lieutenant contacted Marshall's counselor and a jail nurse about Marshall's condition. Yet none of these defendants got Marshall the necessary medical care or otherwise responded appropriately, the lawsuit alleges.

Marshall had a history of intravenous drug use known to defendant Karen Weaver, LPN, which is a significant risk factor for sepsis, the civil suit said.

Shortly before 1 p.m. Dec. 18, 2021, Richland County Jail Corrections Officer Thomas Gordon called for an emergency response for Marshall because he was unresponsive in his cell. He was transported to a hospital where it was reported to the medical staff he had been acting abnormally for a week.

He died Dec. 22, 2021, in the intensive care unit.

Marshall was diagnosed at the hospital with sepsis. "Because defendants' actions and inactions had allowed his condition to become so severe, doctors were unable to save Zach," the lawsuit said.

Lawsuit alleges jail medical staff failed to act

The timeline and details of Marshall's tragic death are outlined in the nine-page federal lawsuit filed by Columbus attorneys for Marshall's estate through its administrator Lacee Bowersox, who is Zachary Marshall's sister, against Advanced Correctional Healthcare Inc.; Kelly Weaver LPN; Madison Conrad Hogie, LPN; Christina Williams, LPN; Christopher Smith, LPN; Patricia Weaver, LPN; Chuka Onyeneke N.D.; Katelyn Huff, LPCC, and Richland County Jail Corrections Officers Thomas Gordon and Chelsie Betancourt.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, in Cleveland.

The attorneys who filed the lawsuit allege all of the defendants violated Marshall's due process rights under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The complaint further alleges that Marshall suffered a wrongful death, and as a result of defendants' breaches of care, Marshall suffered harm, including pre-death conscious pain and suffering. In addition to any direct liability, by the doctrine of "respondeat superior," defendant Advanced Correctional Healthcare is liable for the acts and omissions of defendants Kelly Weaver, Hogie, Williams, Smith, Patricia Weaver and Onyeneke, the lawsuit alleges.

The plaintiff is demanding compensatory damages and a trial by jury.

Autopsy shows cause of death

The autopsy report showed that Marshall's cause of death was "sepsis due to endocarditis with multiple septic emboli," according to records from Montgomery County Medical Examiner's Office, where Marshall's body was taken for autopsy.

Bowersox said her brother was legally blind and was born premature at only 1 pound. He had developmental delays and had a substance abuse problem at a very young age. He was diagnosed with spina bifida and had only one working kidney, she said.

"He had multiple eye surgeries and he was in a car wreck and broke his back. They put him on pain meds and that's what fueled the opiate addiction," she said Friday.

"Zachary was the nicest and most gentle person. He had many friends, enjoyed video gaming and was very laid back. He was professionally tech-savvy, loved listening to his music, it was very important to him," according to his obituary.

Attorney says inmates in jails deserve dignity, respect, basic medical attention

Attorney Barton Keyes, of the Columbus law firm of Cooper Elliott, said on Friday, "All they had to do was get medical attention. This was a situation where he was obviously undergoing a serious medical condition and signs of infection and it was just ignored for just so long it killed him.

"The problem that we see here and in so many jail settings is that people are treated as an afterthought and they're not given the medical care that they need. Regardless of why somebody is in a jail, they deserve dignity. They deserve a basic degree of respect, and they deserve basic medical attention. This is going to continue to happen over and over in jails in Ohio and throughout the country so long as jails don't train their staff the right way and don't provide enough medical staff to respond to situations like Zach's and others," he said.

Marshall was jailed on a misdemeanor warrant after his sister had called paramedics in Bucyrus on an unrelated illness, Keyes said.

Federal lawsuit second in 2023 against Richland County Jail medical staff

This is the second federal lawsuit filed in 2023 against Advanced Correctional Healthcare Inc. at Richland County Jail.

From the beginning of Maggie Copeland's scheduled 15-day incarceration on May 5, 2022, at the Richland County Jail, she reportedly was experiencing obvious signs of drug withdrawal, but a lawsuit filed in federal court Aug. 4, 2023, alleges her condition was met with "deliberate indifference" by those in charge who refused to provide necessary medical care even though she told them she was a heroin addict.

Six days later, Copeland, 29, of Mansfield, was found near death in a cell at the jail.

Copeland was found unresponsive at 7:08 a.m. May 11, 2022, lying naked with her hair cut off, with vomit coming out of her mouth. She was pronounced dead 34 minutes later at OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital.

Copeland's cause of death was listed as dehydration with renal failure, according to her autopsy report from the Montgomery County Medical Examiner's Office. The death was contributed to by drug abuse, the report indicates.

The Richland County Sheriff's Office on Friday said they were forwarding the News Journal's request for comment to outside legal counselor for a response.

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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Richland County Jail medical staff sued over Bucyrus man's death