Woman Suffers Brain Damage After Chicago Cops Ignore Hidden Ecstasy, Judge Says

A federal judge in Illinois declined to dismiss a lawsuit against Chicago police after a woman overdosed in custody. The family claims at least 16 officers knew 27 ecstasy pills were hidden inside the detainee but failed to get medical help before she went into cardiac arrest and suffered permanent

Woman Suffers Brain Damage After Chicago Cops Ignore Hidden Ecstasy, Judge Says

A federal judge in Illinois will let a lawsuit move forward against Chicago police after a woman overdosed while detained and suffered lasting brain injury.

The woman's guardians filed claims of civil rights violations and negligence. They allege that more than a dozen officers at the Chicago Police Department were aware that the arrested woman had concealed roughly two dozen ecstasy tablets inside her body. Despite this, no one called for medical assistance or warned jail staff before she collapsed from cardiac arrest hours later.

The court ruled that the family's claims are strong enough to proceed. If the facts are proven, a reasonable officer would have recognized the serious danger of leaving those drugs inside a detainee without treatment.

The woman survived the incident but now lives with permanent cognitive impairment. The lawsuit targets the city and its police force for failing to protect someone in their care.

Source: Courthouse News Service

Source: Courthouse News Service