Family of woman who died in a rural Nevada jail settles lawsuit for $2 million

The family of a Texas woman who died while detoxing at the Mineral County Jail in Hawthorne nearly two years ago has settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Sheriff Randy Adams for $2 million.

A federal judge also will monitor the jail for four years to ensure Adams implements new procedures to ensure inmates receive proper medical care while in his custody.

Kelly Coltrain, 27, lay dead in her jail cell for nearly six hours before a deputy discovered her body, despite a requirement that she be checked every half hour. Video shows the deputy who found her did not call paramedics when he found her unresponsive. Instead he nudged her with the toe of his boot, then left the cell to call his sergeant.

Coltrain was drug dependent and died on her third night at the jail from complications of withdrawal. She was booked into the jail after being pulled over for speeding because she had unpaid traffic tickets.

More:Denied medical care while detoxing, Texas woman died in a rural Nevada jail

Coltrain had told her jailers that she needed medical attention, was drug dependent and suffered from seizures. She asked to go to the hospital. Instead, the jail sergeant handed her a mop and asked her to clean up her own vomit from the cell. She died less than an hour later, after suffering an apparent seizure.

Coltrain's mother, father and grandmother filed a wrongful death lawsuit last year, accusing the sheriff's office of ignoring her life-threatening medical condition.

In a written statement, their lawyers, Terri Keyser-Cooper and Kerry Doyle, said Coltrain's death was preventable.

"With the nationwide opioid crisis, it was unconscionable that the Mineral County Jail had no policy requiring medical attention for inmates going through withdrawal," they said. "With Kelly’s history of seizures, she was covered by a policy that deputies actively ignored. If they had taken her to the hospital as they were required to do when they learned she had a history of seizures, she would have seen a doctor, been medically treated, and be alive today.”

An investigation into Coltrain's death by the Nevada Division of Investigation found the sheriff's office violated several policies and procedures.

The investigator also asked the Mineral County district attorney to consider criminal charges in the case, after finding evidence the Mineral County Sheriff's Office may have violated state laws prohibiting inhumane treatment of prisoners and using one's official authority for oppression.

District Attorney Steven Rye declined to prosecute anyone involved in Coltrain's death.

In addition to the $2 million settlement, which includes both a payment to Coltrain's family members and money to cover their legal fees, the sheriff's office is required to implement a host of new policies to ensure inmates receive proper care.

Any inmate at risk of withdrawal or with a history of seizures must be medically cleared by the local hospital before being detained at the jail. Deputies will be required to physically check inmates under observation every 30 minutes.

Jail personnel also must undergo regular health training. 

U.S. District Court Judge Larry Hicks will monitor the jail for four years to ensure those policies are both implemented and followed. Keyser-Cooper and Doyle will review reports from the jail every six months to ensure the training is occurring.

Anjeanette Damon is the government watchdog reporter for the RGJ. You can reach her at adamon@rgj.com or follow her on Twitter @AnjeanetteDamon. If you care about shining a bright light on decisions made by your elected officials, please consider subscribing to the Reno Gazette Journal.