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I don’t even know where to start with this one….

Man Spends 2 Years in Solitary After DWI Arrest


Dona Ana County, NM.  Jan. 25 – A New Mexico man who said he was forced to pull his own tooth while in solitary confinement because he was denied access to a dentist has been awarded million due to inhumane treatment by New Mexico’s Dona Ana County Jail.

Stephen Slevin was arrested in August of 2005 for driving while intoxicated, then thrown in jail for two years. He was in solitary at Dona Ana County Jail for his entire sentence and basically forgotten about and never given a trial, he told NBC station KOB.com Tuesday night.

"[Jail guards were] walking by me every day, watching me deteriorate," Slevin said. "Day after day after day, they did nothing, nothing at all, to get me any help."

Slevin’s medical problems extended beyond his dental issues, he said. His toenails started curling around his foot because they were so long, he told KOB.com. And his countless requests to see a doctor for depression medication were ignored, he said.

He said his lawsuit "has never been about the money. I’ve always wanted this to make a statement."

The million, awarded by a federal jury Tuesday, is one of the largest prisoner civil rights settlements in U.S. history, according to KOB.com.

"I wanted people to know that there are people at The Dona Ana County Jail that are doing things like this to people and getting away with it," said Slevin, who now suffers from PTSD and believes he will have to take medication for life as a result. "Why they did what they did, I have no idea."

The mistreatment started from the moment his client was arrested, Slevin’s attorney, Matt Coyte, told msnbc.com.

"He was driving through New Mexico and arrested for a DWI, and he allegedly was in a stolen vehicle. Well, it was a car he had borrowed from a friend; a friend had given him a car to drive across the country," Coyte said.

Slevin was depressed at the time, Coyte explained, and wanted to get out of New Mexico. Instead, he found himself in jail.

"When he gets put in the jail, they think he’s suicidal, and they put him in a padded cell for three days, but never give him any treatment."

Nor did they give him a trial, Coyte said. Slevin said he never saw a judge during his time in confinement.

After three days in a padded cell, jail guards transferred Slevin into solitary confinement without explanation.  "Their policy is to then just put them in solitary" if they appear to have mental health issues, Coyte told msnbc.com.

Dona Ana County officials were tight-lipped about the case, refusing to answer questions about whether any jail employees were reprimanded or fired over Slevin’s treatment…

While in solitary confinement, a prisoner is entitled to one hour per day out of the cell, but often times, Slevin wasn’t even granted that, Coyte said. He was deprived of showers and grew fungus underneath his skin. He lost his will to even want to get out and live in the outside world, Coyte told msnbc.com.

"Your insanity builds. Some people holler or throw feces out their cell doors," he said. "Others rock back and forth under a blanket for a year or more, which is what my client did."

By the time Slevin got out of jail, his hair was shaggy and overgrown, his beard long, and his face pale and sunken, a drastic contrast from the clean-shaven booking photo taken of him when he was arrested two years prior…

"Hs life has been devoted to survival [since his release from solitary]," Coyte told msnbc.com. "He is totally inequipped; he is hollow. They’ve removed his humanity from him."

His suffering hasn’t been in vain though, Coyte said.  "He’s a brave guy. When he says it’s not about the money, he really means it. He wants no one to go through what he went through. And people do, in New Mexico and across this country."

This wasn’t China or North Korea.  This happened in America.  And as his attorney said, this kind of thing isn’t going on just in New Mexico, it’s happening "across this country".
 

(Thanks to Robert Battle and Bill Sullivan.)
 

DUI BLOG

While 33 states – including Guam and the District of Columbia — have bans on texting while driving, Florida is one of just 17 states that do not have specific bans against texting and driving, despite a number of efforts by legislators to pass these types of laws. Currently, no states have blanket bans which prohibit all cellphone use by motorists. However, eight states – as well as the Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia – have laws which ban the use of handheld cellphones while driving.

In Florida, a number of proposed laws were considered by Legislature in the latest session. One proposed law would have mandated driver education programs to include information about the dangers of distracted driving and the hazards of cellphones and other mobile devices while driving. Another proposed piece of legislation would have made it illegal for drivers under the age of 18 to use handheld cell phones and mobile devices while driving. None of these bills passed. Sen. Evelyn J. Lynn, R-Ormond Beach sponsored SB 80, which would have created the Florida Ban on Texting While Driving Law. That law also did not pass, but Sen. Evelyn J. Lynn has spoken out about the need for such legislation.

Certainly, a number of studies do seem to suggest that the use of cell phones and mobile devices while driving is dangerous. The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute completed a study in 2009 which found that using a cell phone while driving increases the risk of accidents and near accidents. Those who text drive are about 23 times as likely to be in a car crash or near car collision as those who drive distraction-free, according to the study. The study found that texting, specifically, was the most dangerous activity related to cellphones and mobile device use while driving. As well, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, 0.2% of car accident related deaths and 1.22 % of car-accident-related injuries in Florida are caused by distracted driving. In 2009, for example, 1,532 people in Florida were injured and four were killed due to distracted driving. However, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, the actual number of Florida car accidents caused by distracted driving may be quite higher, since drivers who have been in an accident rarely own up to driving distracted and, in some cases, there is no evidence to confirm that a driver was distracted.

Statistics such as these have led many Florida residents to conclude that there needs to be laws against distracted driving in order to prevent more Florida pedestrian accidents and car accidents. However, others oppose the idea of more government interference for drivers. They note that written tests for learner’s permits in Florida already contain questions about distracted driving. As well, a 2010 study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found that in states with texting bans, the rates of car accidents did not actually decrease after a texting ban. In fact, in three states, the number of car collisions increased after the texting ban was put in place. Another study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found that bans which prohibit the use of handheld cell phones and mobile devices also did not reduce the number of car crashes. As well, some believe that technology is actually helping to prevent Florida car accidents, as there are hands-free texting applications, alerts for distracted drivers, and other special safety features, available for drivers.

Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog