Ottawa County award is eye-opener for commissioners

Sequoyah County Commissioners are concerned about how a multi-million dollar lawsuit such as the one recently in Ottawa County could not only deplete the county’s financial resources, but could also increase property taxes significantly until the debt is clear.

No lawsuits against Sequoyah County are currently pending, and according to Sequoyah County Sheriff Larry Lane, three lawsuits filed in the past against the jail were all dismissed.

However, a recent case in Ottawa County has commissioners throughout the state concerned, according to District 3 Commissioner Jim Rogers, who also serves as president of the Association of County Commissioners of Oklahoma (ACCO).

A federal jury recently awarded a payment of $33 million to the family of an inmate who died in Ottawa County Jail. According to reports, Terral Ellis Jr., a 26-yearold father, died of sepsis and pneumonia on Oct. 22, 2015, while being incarcerated in the Ottawa County Jail. Reports indicate knowledge of a DUI warrant is what prompted Ellis to surrender to jail staff 10 days prior to his death.

While incarcerated, his multiple medical complaints of seizures, convulsions and numbness in his legs were not only ignored by the Ottawa County Jail nurse, but the nurse also “screamed and mocked the dying man,” according to news reports.

For each of Oklahoma’s 77 counties, attorney fees and lawsuit expenses are paid from each county’s $2 million insurance policy through ACCO. Anything left on the policy goes toward the judgment, while the county is responsible for payment beyond the $2 million cap.

“This is going to be devastating to Ottawa County. A lawsuit like that can force a jail to shut down,” Rogers said last Monday, during the regular meeting of Sequoyah County Board of Commissioners.

“We have the same insurance, and if something like that was to happen here, ACCO would pay the maximum amount of $2 million, but the rest would come from a bond election or property taxes.”

Rogers said he has been in meetings with other ACCO board members and the State Sheriff ’s Association to discuss the issue in the way of prevention and finding solutions.

“Mainly to see what we need to do, and the place to begin is joining our efforts and develop ways to keep something like this from happening to other counties,” Rogers said.

Rogers said as president of ACCO, the board was facing “so many lawsuits against county jails,” which resulted in the board placing the $2 million cap.

“In cases such as the one in Ottawa County, the judge ordered the additional amount would have to come from the taxpayers. I really don’t know what Ottawa commissioners are going to do about that. Plus, with interest which has accumulated since the case began and additional court and attorney’s fees, the county will be paying out between $40 million and $50 million in compensatory damages,” Rogers said.

Rogers said one of the challenges is to keep qualified employees working in the county jails.

“We’ve hired a liaison who has law enforcement and prison experience to look at all the county jails and see how they are set up. We’re trying to protect all counties in the state and to be productive,” he said.

On a positive note, Rogers said he is grateful the Sequoyah County Jail is considered “premier” among the 77 county jails in the state.

“We have a great sheriff and a great staff and they’re good at what they do,” he said.

The Ellis family has stated through its attorney that it is “hopeful” the $33 million verdict will spark long-overdue reforms of the “broken healthcare delivery systems in the Oklahoma County jails.”

The latest news reports indicate Theresa Horn, Ottawa County Jail nurse, now retired, who is at the center of the wrongful death lawsuit, may face criminal charges.

Ottawa County is required to pay the entire amount to the plaintiffs in three years, according to reports.