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| Treatment of death row inmates investigated |
| By The Reno-Gazette Journal |
| Published: 05/15/2006 |
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RENO, NV - Inadequate, improper or nonexistent medical care at Ely State Prison may have led to the deaths of some death row inmates, and is threatening the lives of many inmates currently on death row, according to the federal public defender's office. In one case in question, the prison's warden, through the Attorney General's office, made a death row inmate his ward, saying the inmate had dementia and couldn't make medical decisions for himself, court documents said. The inmate, Patrick Cavanaugh, died in April. Neither Warden E.K. McDaniel nor the attorney general's office contacted Cavanaugh's lawyers about his mental state or the warden's decision to become his medical guardian, the lawyers said. In another case, an inmate currently on death row, Kevin James Lisle, has suffered life-threatening illnesses, but has received little to no care, the defender's office said. Lisle told his lawyers that when he complained about a blood clot in his leg, the prison doctor said "he hoped (Lisle) would die from it." Two nurses, one currently at the prison, called the medical care at the prison "substandard." In response, the federal public defender's office filed "a motion for extraordinary relief" last week calling for a hearing on the conditions at the prison's medical center and asking the judge to order the attorney general's office to makes copies of the medical records of all death row inmates to protect against tampering. Based on the Lisle case and on similar claims by other death row inmates, Michael Pescetta, assistant federal public defender, said he has concerns about whether the lack of medical care resulted in the deaths of others, including Cavanaugh, Gerald Gallego and Kenneth McKague. Fritz Schlottman, spokesman for the Nevada Department of Corrections, said Lisle's claims are unfounded. He also said some of the allegations are being made "without having the facts to back it up." |
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