Federal lawsuit claims heart missing from inmate's body, remains not properly preserved

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https://abc3340.com/news/local/federal-lawsuit-claims-inmates-body-not-properly-preserved-heart-missing-adoc-prison-alabama-autopsy-brandon-dotson

 

 

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by Cynthia Gould

Thu, December 7th 2023

 

Disturbing allegations were raised in a federal lawsuit filed Thursday concerning the storage and preservation of a state inmate's remains.

Brandon Dotson died Nov. 16 at Ventress Correctional Facility in Barbour County. The Dotson family attorney says that was the same day he was to be considered for parole.

The family says they spent days trying to claim his body for a funeral according to court filings. When the body was released the lawsuit contends it was so badly decomposed they were unable to have an open casket.

 

 

 

 

 

WBMA

 

"This is the fifth case where I've had a funeral director say they've never received a body in such terrible condition," said Faraino. Last Thanksgiving Faraino explained a family told her the smell from the decomposing corpse of their loved one was so overwhelming they could not have an open casket. On another deceased inmate, it was reported the scalp was pulled back and not properly in place.

Also extremely troubling to Dotson's family, the revelation that their son's heart was missing. That was reported by an independent pathologist the family hired in Birmingham to determine a cause of death.

"At every stage when a family member goes through a DOC (Department of Corrections) death they are disrespected, dismissed, seen as an inconvenience. They are just trying to get basic information. These are people's sons, fathers, and daughters. DOC treats them like they are subhuman," said Faraino.

The court filing asks for an immediate return of the organ and any other remains belonging to Dotson. Attorney Lauren Faraino said that a teleconference was held Thursday. The parties named in the lawsuit including the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) and the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences (ADFS) said they were not in possession of the heart.

"There are very few things that shock me anymore in this system. But there is something so grotesque and disrespectful and unacceptable about taking the organ from a person without the family knowing," remarked Faraino.

The Alabama Department of Corrections said it did not comment on pending litigation. We were unable to reach ADFS for comment.

ADOC released a statement on the incident last month.

On Thursday, November 16, 2023, inmate Brandon Dotson was found unresponsive in his cell at Ventress Correctional Facility. He was transported to the Health Care Unit where medical staff conducted life-saving measures. Unfortunately, Dotson was not able to be resuscitated, and he was pronounced deceased by the attending physician.

Dotson, 43 years old, was serving a 99-year sentence for Burglary III out of Lawrence County.

The Dotson's join a growing list of families questioning how their incarcerated family members died inside Alabama prisons. A number have told ABC 3340 News they question claims about overdoses and fear their loved ones have been murdered.

 

 

[Auburn85 432]

https://wpde.com/news/nation-world/-brain-missing-autopsy-decomposing-body-2nd-case-revealed-alabama-inmate-body-found-missing-organs-charles-edward-singleton-brandon-dotson-department-corrections-pathology

 

 

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2nd such case: Inmate's organs, including brain, missing from decomposing body

 

by CYNTHIA GOULD | WBMA Staff

Wed, January 10th 2024

 

ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Ala. (WBMA) — Court documents reveal a second case of a deceased Alabama inmate's body found missing organs. The body of Charles Edward Singleton was returned to his family, missing all organs including his brain.

Singleton died on Nov. 2, 2021, in the custody of the Alabama Department of Corrections. He had been housed at the Hamilton Aged and Infirmed before he was sent to an outside hospital for care prior to his death.

According to the statement by a family member, the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Department of Pathology performed the autopsy. The family requested the body then be sent to a funeral home in Pell City. The funeral director told the family it "would be difficult to prepare his body for viewing" since it was already in a "noticeable state of decomposition." The funeral home characterized it as "advanced skin slippage."

The family, according to the court filing, was then informed there were no organs in the body. It was explained to them, post-autopsy, the organs are usually placed in a bag and put back in the body. The family was also informed Singleton's brain had been removed.

Singleton's family requested UAB return the organs, but they reported they never received the organs. We have been unable to reach Singleton's family for comment.

UAB provided this statement:

We do not comment on pending litigation. We only conduct autopsies with consent or authorization and follow standard procedures equitably for anyone consented to or authorized for an autopsy. The autopsy practice is accredited by the College of American Pathologists and staffed by credentialed physicians who are certified by the American Board of Pathology.

In an autopsy, organs and tissues are removed to best determine the cause of death. Autopsy consent includes consent for final disposition of the organs and tissues; unless specifically requested, organs are not returned to the body.

UAB is among providers that – consistent with Alabama law – conduct autopsies of incarcerated persons at the direction of the State of Alabama. A panel of medical ethicists reviewed and endorsed our protocols regarding autopsies conducted for incarcerated persons.

 

 

The issue of deceased inmates missing organs was first reported by WBMA concerning the case of Brandon Dotson. His family learned his heart was missing during a second autopsy the family had commissioned in Birmingham. The pathologist reported the heart was not in the chest cavity so he could not complete an exam.

The Dotson family has filed a federal lawsuit. The information about Charles Singleton's missing organs was part of the court filings in the Dotson case.

 

Last week, a federal judge ordered ADOC and Department of Forensic Sciences to turn over documents concerning Dotson's state autopsy by Monday so she could review them. No state official could answer the question of what happened to Brandon Dotson's heart during a hearing in Birmingham on Friday.

 

 

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WTF!?

Now here's something worth investigating.

[Auburn85 432]

https://abc3340.com/news/local/inmates-body-returned-to-family-missing-organs-third-case-revealed-adoc-uab-autopsy-alabama-prison

 

 

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Brother retrieves inmate's organs missing after autopsy at UAB

 

by Cynthia Gould

Tue, January 30th 2024

 

MOBILE, Ala. (WBMA) — Simone Moore traveled four hours home to Mobile from UAB Hospital in Birmingham carrying his brother's organs in a container wrapped in a plastic red biohazard bag. Moore says when he arrived at the funeral home he collapsed under the weight of it all. "I felt the weight of the world," he explained.

His brother Kelvin had died from a fentanyl overdose according to Limestone Correctional Facility officials. An autopsy was performed the weekend of July 22nd, 2023. The family was told they could have his body picked up the following Monday. But when Kelvin's body arrived at a Mobile funeral home, staff told the family there were no organs in his body.

"Posthumously they robbed his organs without our permission. They didn't ask," remarked Moore. He explained his father was heartbroken and passed away after Kelvin died. The elder Moore asked his son to find out what happened with Kelvin's organs. "That is the most vile action to do to someone," said Simone Moore.

We asked Moore whether he knew for certain he was given Kelvin's organs at UAB. He admitted he didn't know what was in the container, they did not crack the seal. The bag was buried with Kelvin.

"He meant the world to us. We doted on him; loved him," said Moore of his baby brother. Moore says he felt so bad he was not there to protect Kelvin.

Moore recalled the night family was notified of Kelvin's death. Someone called from the prison asking, "Y'all got somebody there named Kelvin? He died." Moore says his mother hit the floor. She had just talked to Kelvin recently on the phone.

Moore described his family as deeply religious. He said Kelvin was the tenth child in a strong, two parent household. Moore explained Kelvin got in with a bad crowd and drugs. He was serving time for attempted murder, burglary and assault. But he was working to turn his life around earning multiple certificates while in prison and teaching GED classes.

The family was in regular contact with him. But they were worried about Kelvin's safety in Alabama's notoriously violent prisons. Last year ADOC set a record for deaths at 325. When Kelvin was assaulted and forced legal action, Moore believes his brother became a target. He was transferred to Limestone.

The family has indicated it plans to file a lawsuit. "It must stop. We don't want this to happen to another family," said Moore. He said a call from a prison official to the funeral home about the family retrieving the organs from UAB raised further suspicion about the motives. It seemed they were trying to persuade the family not to pick up the organs according to Moore.

This is the third case in the past two months where families have reported organs missing from their loved ones' bodies while in the custody of the Alabama Department of Corrections. One has resulted in a federal lawsuit filed by the family of Brandon Dotson who was missing his heart when his body arrived at a funeral home.

UAB was named in that lawsuit. Testimony revealed its pathology department was not involved in that autopsy. University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital is contracted to perform autopsies for the Alabama Department of Corrections. According to a spokesperson, no criminal cases are sent to UAB. Those go to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.

In 2021 Governor Kay Ivey signed a law making it illegal for doctors or forensic researchers to take an organ without notifying next of kin. A Baldwin County mother whose 17 year old son died of a brain aneurysm pushed the legislation. She learned her son's heart was taken without her permission. He was not a state inmate.

Several experts have told ABC 33/40 News it is extremely rare for organs to be kept after an autopsy. They are usually put in a biohazard bag and returned to the body. There would have to be a clear reason to keep them such as for a criminal investigation and it should be explained to the family.

"It is an ethical duty of the prison system, of the correctional system to be in constant contact with family members on this point. This is an important matter of trust. It's important for families to begin the process of healing and have the rituals they would want," explained Dominic Sisti, Associate Professor of Medical Ethics, University of Pennsylvania.

Sisti said he did not want to speculate on why the organs were not being returned to the body. He reviewed two ABC 33/40 News reports on the issue. Some have suggested the organs maybe used for research or teaching. "They should not be using organs to teach without the consent of the patient or family; that's just a no brainer from an ethics perspective," said Sisti.

Sisti explains there are some religious groups that believe the body must be fully intact for burial. Moore says his family's beliefs would not allow all organs to be removed. "Some families would donate, just ask," remarked Moore.

 

Family of deceased inmate retrieves organs from UAB Hospital. (Courtesy Simone Moore)

 

 

Sisti says the body of an incarcerated person must be treated with the same sensitivity and respect as any other person. "It's indifference and bad incompetence maybe; this shouldn't be happening," remarked Sisti.

We also asked about the condition of inmate bodies reported to be decomposing on arrival at funeral homes. "The systems should be in place where these things (autopsies) do not drag on so long that their only options are cremation or a closed casket," explained Sisti. He said whatever is happening is not happening expeditiously and transparently and those two things are problematic.

A UAB spokesperson released the following statement earlier this month:

We do not comment on pending litigation. We only conduct autopsies with consent or authorization and follow standard procedures equitably for anyone consented to or authorized for an autopsy. The autopsy practice is accredited by the College of American Pathologists and staffed by credentialed physicians who are certified by the American Board of Pathology.

In an autopsy, organs and tissues are removed to best determine the cause of death. Autopsy consent includes consent for final disposition of the organs and tissues; unless specifically requested, organs are not returned to the body.

UAB is among providers that – consistent with Alabama law – conduct autopsies of incarcerated persons at the direction of the State of Alabama. A panel of medical ethicists reviewed and endorsed our protocols regarding autopsies conducted for incarcerated persons.