BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Targets of a lawsuit blaming them in the death of a woman
in the Shelby County Jail have fired back at the allegations.
Shelby County attorney Frank "Butch" Ellis said a preliminary investigation
found the suit has "no merit." And a private probation company said it has
nothing to do with the death of Rebecca Lynn Allred who died May 18, 2011 of
liver failure.
Allred's daughter Shelby County resident Brittne A. Bell is suing the county,
the sheriff, the health care provider, a private probation company and the town
of Harpersville on behalf of her mother who died after five days in jail,
according to the lawsuit.
"Had Ms. Allred been given even rudimentary medical treatment when she
presented to the jail medical center, her condition would not have progressed to
fatality," the suit contends. "Sadly, however, jail personnel repeatedly and
callously denied her the right to medical treatment of any sort, refusing to
even see her and attempt a diagnosis."
The suit was filed Monday and amended Friday to include the probation
services company Judicial
Correction Services, the town of Harpersville and the city's
mayor.
"It is obvious that the plaintiff's lawyers filing this amended complaint
decided to try and take advantage of recent publicity concerning JCS and added
JCS as an afterthought," said Kevin Egan, JCS' chief marketing officer.
"We will continue to investigate it, but at this point the indication is that
it has no basis," said Ellis, the attorney for the county.
The health care company, Prison Healthcare LLC, is a subsidiary of Baptist
Health Systems. Ross Mitchell, vice president of external and governmental
affairs, said they do not comment on pending litigation.
JCS, which contracts with about 100 municipalities in Alabama, is the target
of a lawsuit that led to a judge this summer charging the court system of
Harpersville with operating a "debtors
prison" where people were jailed for not paying fines and fees
charged by the system.
Allred was jailed in Shelby County for not paying fines associated with a car
tag violation out of Harpersville, the suit says.
"Ms. Allred was indigent at the time of her arrest and therefore unable to
secure bail money," the suit states. "The 'bail' required for her release was
the amount of the original fine and additional fees added by JCS," the probation
company.
"JCS had no part whatsoever in Ms. Bell's death," according to Egan's
prepared statement. "Further, JCS only provided supervision services to
Harpersville, did not arrest people for Harpersville, and played no part at all
in Ms. Bell's incarceration. Those decisions, including the amount set for bail,
were made solely by the Harpersville court. JCS had no part in Ms. Bell's care
at the Shelby County Jail."
The lawsuit states that fellow inmates "used their limited telephone
privileges" to contact Allred's son, Dustin Allred, to tell him his mother was
ill.
Dustin Allred left five messages for medical staff on the day his mother
died, and during one of the calls a medical staffer told him there was nothing
wrong with his mother, the lawsuit alleges.
On May 17, 2011, she was found unresponsive in her cell and was taken to
Shelby Baptist Medical Center where she died the following day, according to the
suit.
The cause of death was liver failure due to acute massive hepatocellular
necrosis and acute bronchopneumonia, according to the suit.
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Private probation outfits raise eyebrows over for-profit
operations
in the Shelby County Jail have fired back at the allegations.
Shelby County attorney Frank "Butch" Ellis said a preliminary investigation
found the suit has "no merit." And a private probation company said it has
nothing to do with the death of Rebecca Lynn Allred who died May 18, 2011 of
liver failure.
Allred's daughter Shelby County resident Brittne A. Bell is suing the county,
the sheriff, the health care provider, a private probation company and the town
of Harpersville on behalf of her mother who died after five days in jail,
according to the lawsuit.
"Had Ms. Allred been given even rudimentary medical treatment when she
presented to the jail medical center, her condition would not have progressed to
fatality," the suit contends. "Sadly, however, jail personnel repeatedly and
callously denied her the right to medical treatment of any sort, refusing to
even see her and attempt a diagnosis."
The suit was filed Monday and amended Friday to include the probation
services company Judicial
Correction Services, the town of Harpersville and the city's
mayor.
"It is obvious that the plaintiff's lawyers filing this amended complaint
decided to try and take advantage of recent publicity concerning JCS and added
JCS as an afterthought," said Kevin Egan, JCS' chief marketing officer.
"We will continue to investigate it, but at this point the indication is that
it has no basis," said Ellis, the attorney for the county.
The health care company, Prison Healthcare LLC, is a subsidiary of Baptist
Health Systems. Ross Mitchell, vice president of external and governmental
affairs, said they do not comment on pending litigation.
JCS, which contracts with about 100 municipalities in Alabama, is the target
of a lawsuit that led to a judge this summer charging the court system of
Harpersville with operating a "debtors
prison" where people were jailed for not paying fines and fees
charged by the system.
Allred was jailed in Shelby County for not paying fines associated with a car
tag violation out of Harpersville, the suit says.
"Ms. Allred was indigent at the time of her arrest and therefore unable to
secure bail money," the suit states. "The 'bail' required for her release was
the amount of the original fine and additional fees added by JCS," the probation
company.
"JCS had no part whatsoever in Ms. Bell's death," according to Egan's
prepared statement. "Further, JCS only provided supervision services to
Harpersville, did not arrest people for Harpersville, and played no part at all
in Ms. Bell's incarceration. Those decisions, including the amount set for bail,
were made solely by the Harpersville court. JCS had no part in Ms. Bell's care
at the Shelby County Jail."
The lawsuit states that fellow inmates "used their limited telephone
privileges" to contact Allred's son, Dustin Allred, to tell him his mother was
ill.
Dustin Allred left five messages for medical staff on the day his mother
died, and during one of the calls a medical staffer told him there was nothing
wrong with his mother, the lawsuit alleges.
On May 17, 2011, she was found unresponsive in her cell and was taken to
Shelby Baptist Medical Center where she died the following day, according to the
suit.
The cause of death was liver failure due to acute massive hepatocellular
necrosis and acute bronchopneumonia, according to the suit.
RELATED
Private probation outfits raise eyebrows over for-profit
operations
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