<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Thursday, March 28, 2024
March 28, 2024

Linkedin Pinterest

Lawsuit challenges jail policy of denying inmates addiction meds

By Associated Press
Published: September 20, 2018, 8:17pm

MIDDLETON, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts jail’s policy of denying inmates access to opioid addiction medication violates constitutional rights and the Americans with Disabilities Act, according a lawsuit filed in federal court this week by the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts.

In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, the civil rights organization asked a judge to require the Essex County House of Correction in Middleton to provide methadone to Geoffrey Pesce.

The ACLU argues that denying Pesce his doctor-prescribed methadone violates the U.S. Constitution’s Eighth Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment, as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with substance use disorder.

The ACLU says Pesce has been in recovery for two years and needs his daily medication. Otherwise, it says, he will go though painful opioid withdrawal while incarcerated and face a higher risk of overdosing upon release.

The organization, which has filed similar lawsuits in Maine and Washington state, said the jail should provide Pesce the medication on site or drive him to his methadone clinic each morning.

Loading...