Hi there, I’m hoping I can get some extra perspective about something involving an injury my father[59M] sustained in jail in Florida. I am in Canada and trying to figure out my options here. It may be a little long and confusing, and some details are fuzzy because of lack of information – you’ve been warned.

A little background, my father has been an alcoholic for 25 years but only recently beginning to really reap the effects of his disease. He has never been arrested before, and is a kind man who wouldn’t hurt a fly. He has a documented history of alcoholic withdrawal seizures and ambulance trips within the county. On Tuesday, May 17th, he was involved in a single car accident. He somehow lost control of his truck and flipped upside down into a canal. Several gas station employees ran from across the street and saved him as the truck was submerged, and he was sent to the hospital. Apparently this made it to the local news (I live in a different country than him.) While at the hospital, he was cleared of severe injuries from the accident, however bloodwork revealed alcohol in his system and he was promptly arrested for DUI and sent to the jail infirmary(from what I know).

Several visitors tried to come and visit him but were told he could not take visitors because of his condition. I made several calls to the jail, who refused to give me any information about his condition or medical history or what kind of care was being taken regarding his detox. On Thursday May 26th, I received a call from his ex-gf that someone had told her he was in the hospital again.. how she received this information I have no idea, because when I called the jail and asked about it they were indignant that she was not supposed to be given that information. They told me they could not confirm or deny if he had been in the hospital since he was taken into custody, but they assured me that he was currently in custody at their facility.

Yesterday, I received a call from a nurse in the local hospital. She needed some information about my father before they could do MRIs and brain scans. I was very confused because this was only 2 hours after the jail told me he was physically in their facility. I was told that the events went as follows: on May 20th (day 3 of his alcoholic detox) my father fell in the shower at jail (presumably during an alcoholic withdrawal seizure) and blasted his head open with “an extreme laceration to the skull”. He was kept in the jail infirmary in an unresponsive condition and (not sure exactly when but she made it sound like a few days) sent to the nearest ICU still unresponsive.

He regained consciousness on the night of the 25th, was somewhat stabilized and transferred to this new ward. She told me his current condition is that he is very disorientated. He knows his name and birthdate, he knows that I’m his daughter and I live far away. But he does not know what month or year it is, cannot tell her who the president is or where he is or what city he lives in, his phone number etc. She told me that they suspect stroke or brain damage due to the fall. He is on a feeding tube and extremely weak and delirious.

My question is, can this fall be negligence on the jail’s part? I cannot believe they let a man who can hardly stand in the best of health, let alone on day 3 of withdrawals when he has a standing history of seizures, take a shower alone with no chair, assistive device, or anyone to help him. It seems common sense to not leave someone in that condition alone in a concrete shower. I’m also alarmed that the jail staff have kept me totally in the dark for the past 8 days regarding how critical his condition is. It seems to me that they are trying to CYA. They told me that anyone could call and claim to be family, when I offered to send my birth certificate and passport proving who I am and my relation, the staff laughed at me and simply said “No, we don’t do that.” They did not tell me about the fall and whenever I give his name they clam up and refuse to talk. If the nurse had not needed to ask about metal in his body, I would have believed that he was in the jail still. I have not called the jail to confront them, and I was told by the nurse that I had to keep the hospital he is in a secret because of security reasons. He has an officer with him 24/7 because he is still technically in custody of this jail system.

I researched online and found quite a few cases of negligence and malpractice against the company that runs this jail’s medical team, including that they have a documented history of telling nurses to never send patients to the hospital because it cuts into their profits. Several nurses have testified in previous cases that they were yelled at or punished for sending patients in critical condition to hospitals which led to worsening of their conditions including full paralysis in one case. I am just a total loss of what I can do and struggling to keep my mind straight.

TLDR; Father, alcoholic with history of withdrawal seizures, arrested for DUI and going through detox in jail. Falls in shower during a seizure and receives a severe head injury that may have caused brain damage. Jail apparently did not give proper care and is trying to hide all information, and has previous lawsuits against them regarding medical & willful negligence.

Here are some of my questions:

1. Is there a way I can get my hands on the records of his incarceration, medical records, or any accident reports regarding this incident? I would like a clearer picture of what happened and what steps were taken to prevent this.

2. Is it worth seeking a lawyer for a phone consultation? If so, which practice field should I be looking into… personal injury, medical malpractice, etc?

3. My father has no money or insurance and will possibly be homeless after his court date on the 6th, if he can even make it to that. My husband and I have some savings but not enough for extensive legal fees. Is there any chance of this case being taken on contingency? I’m not looking for a payout, I am worried about the hospital bills and any long-term care that may be needed if it IS proven that my father has sustained long-term brain damage from this fall.

Any help or insight would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.