4 days ago
Lawsuit over Franklin County jail overdose alleges neglect and coverup from nurses
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A recent lawsuit alleges medical staff at a Franklin County jail did not perform required safety checks on a woman, resulting in her death, then falsified records to cover it up.
The lawsuit, filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court in March, accuses multiple medical professionals with Armor Health of Ohio LLC who worked an overnight shift at the jail on Jackson Pike of not properly monitoring Gierra Perdue, 33, who died of a fentanyl overdose. The legal action was filed on behalf of Perdue's mother.
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On March 9, 2023, Perdue was arrested and taken to jail. She was in the process of detoxing from drugs she took before her arrest, according to the lawsuit. At 'some point' after arriving at the jail, Perdue was put on a safety watch, which required medical staff to 'visually inspect' her every 8-10 minutes, the filing says.
Franklin County contracts with Armor Health of Ohio to provide medical services at the jail. Along with the company, the lawsuit names four medical staff members who were working the overnight shift on March 16 as defendants.
Between the four employees, Perdue was checked on a total of four times: at 9:07 p.m., 10:15 p.m., 11:14 p.m. and 2:08 a.m., when she was found dead. However, some of the staff falsified a log to indicate they checked on Perdue 42 times, according to the suit. All of the entries claimed Perdue was 'asleep.'
The lawsuit does not specify when or how Perdue may have come into contact with the fentanyl that caused her fatal overdose.
The filing further alleges that before Perdue was discovered dead, the nurses had prefilled out safety check entries for times after her death. After realizing the records would be reviewed in a death investigation, they created a new log that did not include times after 2 a.m. — but still falsely reported 42 checks — and discarded the original in the medical record shredding bin.
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An investigator asked one of the nurses why she falsified the reports, to which she blamed 'ignorance and laziness,' according to the lawsuit.
The legal filing claims Perdue 'needlessly' died under the 'neglect' of the medical staff. It says if the nurses were checking on Perdue when they falsely reported doing so, they would have clearly noticed her in distress, making it obvious she needed emergency attention.
The lawsuit requests damages exceeding $25,000 on top of all court-related costs. NBC4 reached out to Armor Health for comment but has not received a response.
Franklin County commissioners entered into a three-year contract with Armor Health in 2021 for nearly $65 million. In October 2024, they extended the contract by one year, and it is currently set to expire on Oct. 17. Founded in 2004, the Florida-based company provides medical care to state and local correctional facilities across the country, according to its website.
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