Milwaukee County and the firm that formerly provided health care at its jail have paid $6.75 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the estate of Terrill Thomas, who died of dehydration in his cell in 2016, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. The county paid about $5 million and $1.7 million came from Armor Correctional Health Services. Lawyers for the estate said it was the largest jail death settlement in Wisconsin history and one of the nation’s largest. “This settlement reflects not only the profound harm suffered by Mr. Thomas and his family, but also the shocking nature of the defendants’ misconduct in shutting off this man’s water and ignoring his obvious signs of distress as he literally died of thirst,” the lawyers said. They “hope that this case sends a message to every single jail and prison in America that this type of blatant disregard for human life will not be tolerated.”
In April 2016, Thomas ran into a casino, yelling and ordering patrons to “get out.” He fired two rounds from a gun and stuffed poker chips into his pockets. Confronted by police, he dropped the handgun into a trash can and was arrested. Family members believe he was having a psychotic episode. After he was jailed, the water was turned off to his cell and never restored. Because of his mental condition, he could not communicate the problem. He was discovered dead seven days later. Three jail employees were convicted for their roles in Thomas’ death. Criminal charges are pending against Miami-based Armor, which no longer has the contract for health care at the jail. Erik Heipt, a lawyer for the Thomas family, said, “I’ve been handling jail deaths for 20 years, and have yet to find one contract provider that doesn’t put its private profits ahead of inmates’ health.”