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Ex-Inmate Wins $3M in Suit After Ohio Failed to File Answer
By: Associated Press
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A former inmate has won $3 million in a lawsuit against an Ohio prison after the state failed to file an answer for several years.
John Henricks had sued Dr. Ida Gonzalez and the Pickaway Correctional Institution, where she worked in June 2008, alleging Gonzalez failed to give him the proper pain medication after an emergency appendectomy.
The state attorney general office’s request to dismiss the case was denied in 2009. The state had 30 days to file the answer rebutting the allegations, but didn’t until 2013.
The Columbus Dispatch reports a Columbus judge recently ruled that Henrick’s allegations were sufficient to find that Gonzalez was liable. A jury awarded Henricks punitive and actual damages.
A Department of Rehabilitation and Correction spokeswoman says the DRC is reviewing the decision.