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PORSMOUTH, Va. (AP) — Officials at a Virginia jail where a mentally ill inmate died last year dismissed allegations Friday that the man was abused in their custody and pushed back against claims of mistreatment made by other inmates.
The family of 24-year-old Jamycheal Mitchell filed $60 million wrongful death lawsuit last month claiming correctional officers at the Hampton Roads regional jail physically abused and withheld food from him. A medical examiner said Mitchell died of heart failure accompanied by severe weight loss several months after being arrested for stealing $5 worth of junk food.
In a statement released to reporters and court documents filed Friday, officials at the Hampton Roads Regional Jail said its employees never mistreated or ignored Mitchell during his incarceration.
"We are confident that the care and treatment we provided to Mr. Mitchell, as well as the care and treatment we provide to all of our inmates, is appropriate and meets or excess both Virginia and National Standards," the jail said in a statement.
An attorney for Mitchell's family said in court documents filed earlier this week that several inmates named as witnesses in the wrongful death lawsuit are now being threatened and mistreated by jail officials.
But an attorney for Jail Superintendent David Simons said in a court filing Friday that there's no credible evidence to support the inmates' claims.
"Ultimately the record will show that these inmates' allegations regarding Mr. Mitchell are unreliable, as are their current allegations of harassment and retaliation," Simons' attorney wrote. He noted that one of the inmates who claimed knowledge about Mitchell's treatment didn't arrive at the facility until after Mitchell died.
The jail said in a statement that Mitchell was offered nearly 300 meals during his stay and received all but three meal trays because he refused them. Mitchell also was seen by medical and mental health care providers about 70 times, the jail said. The jail said the contractor providing health care at the jail never told officials that Mitchell was suffering from a life-threatening condition.
State investigators have said that a judge twice ordered Mitchell transferred to a state mental hospital, but his name was never placed on the hospital's waiting list because of clerical errors. Two state agencies investigated the death but were unable to determine exactly what happened at the jail.
Virginia State Police announced this week that they have launched a criminal investigation into the incident.
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