FJI has settled a lawsuit on behalf of Jeremy Barrett, who was formerly incarcerated in the Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC). While serving his three-year sentence, Mr. Barrett was transferred to a cell with another inmate who had a history of attacking his cellmates, and warned corrections officers that, because of his mental condition, he could not be put with other inmates. Similarly, Mr. Barrett pleaded with corrections officers to not place the two men together. But officers ignored these warning signs, and predictably, Mr. Barrett was brutally attacked, which resulted in the loss of his eye. Mr. Barrett has since been released, left to manage his life with diminished eyesight.
Lawyers from FJI brought suit to seek redress for the FDOC’s failure to protect Mr. Barrett from harm. When states incarcerate people, they have a responsibility to take reasonable measures to ensure inmates in their care remain safe. The FDOC failed to do that for Mr. Barrett, and he lost his eye as a result.