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| Lawsuit seeks $28 million in inmate's death |
| By Baltimore Sun |
| Published: 11/23/2004 |
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The family of an inmate who died of asphyxiation at Western Correctional Institution in Maryland filed suit in federal court yesterday against prison officials for what the family's attorney describes as an "unreasonable and illegal" use of deadly force. The lawsuit, which names Warden Jon P. Galley, Lt. James Shreve and six officers as defendants, seeks $28 million in damages for the April 30 death of Ifeanyi A. Iko at the Allegany County prison. The lawsuit alleges violations of U.S. civil rights law and accuses the warden and correctional officers of trying to cover up the circumstances of Iko's death. It lays a large part of the blame for the death on the atmosphere at the prison. The suit says prison administrators failed to "discipline or prosecute in any meaningful manner" correctional officers who have been involved in "incidents of brutality." These officers were encouraged by "investigative and administrative inaction ... to believe that misconduct, including assault, battery and other acts of brutality were permissible and would not be punished," the suit states. The U.S. Justice Department is investigating inmate claims of abuse by officers at the prison, and the FBI is investigating Iko's death. State corrections officials said yesterday they could not comment because they had not yet seen the lawsuit. It was filed in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt and was expected to be assigned to federal court in Baltimore. The state medical examiner's office ruled Iko's death a homicide, but an internal investigation and later grand jury probe found no criminal wrongdoing by prison staff. Gary Adler, an attorney for the Iko family, said the lawsuit is not just about money, but also about exposing abusive conditions at the prison. |
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