|
|
| Former Inmate Sues Vermont Over Methadone Refusal |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 06/17/2002 |
|
A former prison inmate is suing the state for the drug withdrawal symptoms he said he endured last year when the Department of Corrections refused to give him methadone in jail. Keith Griggs of Putney was serving a 15-day sentence in the Woodstock jail last June for violating the conditions of his parole for a forgery conviction. Griggs is a recovering heroin addict who had been on methadone for two years at the time. Methadone is used to wean addicts off heroin because methadone blocks the painful symptoms of withdrawal. Because methadone is a drug, users experience withdrawal if they suddenly stop taking it. The Department of Corrections refused to give Griggs his methadone, saying Vermont law made it illegal for the drug to be dispensed any place other than a hospital. Griggs and his lawyers from the Prisoners' Rights Office took the issue to court. A Windsor County Superior Court judge twice ordered the Corrections Department to allow Griggs to receive methadone, once on his sixth day in jail, and again on his eighth day there. The order on the eighth day said the state would be fined $1,000 a day for each day it denied Griggs his methadone. The next day the state opted to release Griggs early rather than give him methadone. Griggs will return to Superior Court to argue that the state should pay him for causing him to go through an additional day of withdrawal after the judge's second ruling. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think