Parents of man who died in Colorado jail say nurses, deputies ignored
his pleas for 15 hours
[July 22, 2025]
By COLLEEN SLEVIN
DENVER (AP) — The parents of a man who died alone in a Colorado jail
cell after an ulcer burned a hole in his digestive tract and left him in
what they said was excruciating pain for about 15 hours filed a federal
lawsuit Monday, accusing the jail's nurses and sheriff's deputes of
ignoring his cries for help.
The lawsuit blames them, local government officials and Southern Health
Partners for failing to stop the death of Daniel Foard in 2023 by taking
him to the hospital. Foard, 32, was a cook at a brewpub and user of
fentanyl who was arrested for failing to appear in court. After being
segregated and monitored for withdrawal from the synthetic opioid, he
began vomiting and complained of stomach pain after being put in a
regular jail cell, it said.
The lawsuit alleges Southern Health Partners — the Tennessee-based
company they contracted with to provide health care at the La Plata
County jail — has tried to maximize its profits at the jail by only
having one nurse on duty at a time, leaving it to medically untrained
deputies to monitor sick inmates. The company holds hundred of contracts
at jails around the country and the lawsuit alleges that is has been
involved in lawsuits related to the deaths of at least five other jail
inmates nationally.
The company's lawyer, Shira Crittendon, said she had not seen the
lawsuit and declined to comment on it.
The sheriff's office referred questions about the the lawsuit to a
county spokesperson. In a statement, the county said it had not analyzed
the allegations in the lawsuit and does not comment publicly on active
litigation.
Autopsy found Foard died because of an ulcer
Foard was found dead in the jail on Aug. 17, 2023, six days after he was
arrested.
An autopsy found Foard died as a result of a hole created by an ulcer in
his small intestine, which caused inflammation of the tissue lining his
abdomen. Such ulcers can let food and digestive juices leak out of the
body's digestive tract.
Fentanyl was found in Foard's blood but the autopsy report did not name
that as a cause of his death. Dr. Michael Arnall ruled Foard's death was
due to natural causes.
On Aug. 15, 2023, even though Foard had collapsed several times and had
trouble standing, he was moved out of an area where he could be more
easily observed for problems with his withdrawal and put into a regular
jail cell, staggering as we went, the lawsuit said. The day nurse
ignored a deputy's concern that he was very unstable, according to the
lawsuit brought by lawyers Dan Weiss, Anna Holland Edwards, John Holland
and Erica Grossman.
After a deputy delivering breakfast on Aug. 16, 2023 saw that Foard
repeatedly fell while trying to get his tray, the jail's day nurse came
to check on him, it said. She recorded that Foard reported he had sharp,
shooting pain that was a “10” on a scale of one to 10, but she did not
call for a doctor or send him to the hospital, it said.
[to top of second column]
|
This image provided the law firm Holland, Holland Edwards and
Grossman, LLC, shows surveillance footage of Daniel Foard at the La
Plata County Jail in Durango, Colo., on Aug. 16, 2023. (Holland,
Holland Edwards and Grossman, LLC, via La Plata County via AP)
The nurse moved Foard to an empty cell where he could be monitored
but didn't tell deputies what he was being monitored for and didn't
order any follow up care or check on him, it said. He vomited all
day and was moved to another cell and then a third because they had
all become so messy with vomit, it said. Surveillance video showed
him crawling to the final cell, where it said he continuously called
out for help and yelled that he needed to go to a hospital, saying
he was vomiting blood. The lawsuit claims that no one responded to
his pleas but one deputy could be heard on surveillance video
telling him to “try to hit that drain” with his vomit to keep the
cell from becoming dirty.
Another nurse, working the evening shift, only walked by his cell
and glanced inside, but did not assess him or provide care as he was
pleading for help, the lawsuit said. When she did enter his cell
around 10 p.m., Foard was dead, it said. She told state
investigators that vomiting was normal for people withdrawing from
fentanyl.
State authorities investigated Foard's death
The day shift nurse later told a state investigator that it was not
unusual that Foard would not have had his vital signs checked for 12
hours because of the number of inmates the jail's nurses need to
provide care, according to a report from an investigation by the
Colorado Bureau of Investigations. She also said she didn't think
there was anything different she could have done based on Foard's
symptoms.
The bureau's findings were forwarded to the 6th District Attorney's
Office, which would decide whether any criminal charges were
warranted in connection with Foard's death. It's not known whether
the office decided to pursue any charges. A telephone message and
email sent to District Attorney Sean Murray were not immediately
returned.
In a statement, Jim Foard and Susan Gizinski said they want everyone
to know about their son's ordeal both to hold those they say are
responsible for his death accountable and to change how inmates are
treated at the jail.
“Just basic training in having compassion for others would be a
great start. But adding more staff is critical too,” they said.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
 |
