A Minnesota county has agreed to pay a $12.2 million settlement to a man who was jailed on suspicion of drunken driving but ended up losing both his hands — allegedly due to inaction of officials in the county jail
MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota county agreed to pay a $12.2 million settlement to a man who was jailed on suspicion of drunken driving but ended up losing both his hands and suffering a heart attack, a stroke and skin lesions all over his body, allegedly due to the inaction of officials in the county jail, attorneys said Wednesday.
Terrance Dwayne Winborn spent about four months in hospitals, including two months on a ventilator, because Scott County jail officials failed during the 39 hours he was incarcerated to ensure he got the prompt treatment he needed, his lawyers said at a news conference.
He was unable to stand up that morning when a jail nurse came by for a COVID-19 check, the complaint said. She noted that his right hand was “extremely swollen,” and that he had trouble answering questions. On a second visit, around midday, the nurse was unable to measure his blood oxygen level but still did not attempt to get him emergency care. By the time a corrections officer drove Winborn to a Shakopee hospital the evening of Aug. 28, his condition was even worse.
Personnel at the suburban hospital were so concerned that they sent him by ambulance that night to a bigger hospital in Minneapolis, where he was put in intensive care, the complaint said. Doctors amputated his hand and part of his forearm two days later after necrotizing fasciitis set in, a condition popularly known as flesh-eating bacteria. It’s a rare condition in which marauding bacteria run rampant through tissue. Affected areas sometimes have to be surgically removed to save the patient’s life.
By the time Winborn was transferred to a nursing home that November, his weight had dropped from his normal 180 pounds to 126 pounds (82 kilograms to 57 kilograms). Another infection led doctors to amputate his left arm below the elbow that December.