via Flickr
Kentrell Hurst was a struggling mother of 5 who found herself in jail after stealing from a grocery store. While there, she entered into a period of detox due to her battle with addiction. Withdrawals soon came.
Jail is not a place you want to be going through addiction withdrawals. This process is extremely hard for people who have developed a dependency on drugs.
The jail staff was supposed to HELP Kentrell, but they decided to ignore her needs instead.
Their neglect led to her death.
Her family is suing because of what happened. The Advocate reports their lawsuit says, “Nurses and Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies ignored the severe pain, nausea, vomiting and cries for help of a woman who died while detoxing at the New Orleans jail.”
It’s not a hard conclusion to draw that the jail staff doesn’t care, since this happens all the time all around the country.
In fact, it happened at this same jail 6 months before Kentrell’s death to a Black man named Dennis Edwards, who was also detoxing and DIED on the floor. The jail tried to cover it up but a nurse exposed the plot.
Someone being in jail does not mean they don’t have rights. You still have the right to healthcare, food, and don’t deserve torture. Kentrell Hurst should still be alive and this facility should be held accountable.