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$825,000 Paid to Estate of New Mexico Jail Detainee Who Died from Heroin Withdrawal
Loaded on Aug. 1, 2022
by Matthew Clarke
published in Prison Legal News
August, 2022, page 36
Filed under:
Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal,
Settlements,
Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
Location:
New Mexico.
by Matt Clarke
In a settlement reached on March 1, 2022, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, agreed to pay $825,000 to resolve claims filed over the heroin withdrawal death of a detainee at the county’s Adult Detention Facility (ADF) six years earlier.
When Ricardo Jose Ortiz was …
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More from this issue:
- Seventh Circuit Says No Evidence Illinois Prisoner Lied About Endangerment to Circumvent PLRA’s Three-Strikes Rule, by Matthew Clarke
- The Filth & the Fury: Philly Jails Descend into Murderous Chaos, by J.D. Schmidt
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- $1,425,000 Paid to Epileptic Illinois Detainee Denied Medication Who Suffered Seizure and Fell From Upper Bunk in Jail, by Jayson Hawkins
- Three Killed in Gang Activity at Mississippi Private Prisons Plus High-Profile Escape, But Only One MTC Guard Arrested, by Kevin Bliss
- Federal Judge Allows Retroactive Benefit Reduction for Incarcerated Veteran, by David Reutter
- The Catalog of Carceral Surveillance: Prison Gaming and AR/VR Services, by Cooper Quintin, Beryl Lipton
- California Appellate Court Reverses $2.7 Million Award for Wrongful Death of Woman Murdered by Grandson on Parole, by Jacob Barrett
- Ninth Circuit Strikes Nevada Ban on Muslim Prisoner’s Scented Prayer Oil, Allows Conditions-of-Confinement Claim Also to Proceed, by Mark Wilson
- Nakamoto Group Accused of Rubber-Stamping ICE Facility Inspections, by Alan Gaynor
- The Prisoner-Run Radio Station That’s Reaching Men on Death Row, by Keri Blakinger
- ACLU Wins FOIA Case at Michigan Supreme Court, Which Says Records May Be Exempted Only by Statute, Not Regulation, by David Reutter
- Floridians Face Prison for Voting from Jail, by Panagioti Tsolkas, Jenifer Lockwood
- Tenth Circuit Reinstates Federal Prisoner’s Claim Against BOP Over Denial of Muslim Group Prayer Five Times a Day, by Matthew Clarke
- Reinstating Suit by Louisiana Detainee’s Mother Over His Jail Suicide, Fifth Circuit Schools Lower Court in Meaning of “Standing”, by Matthew Clarke
- Vermont Supreme Court Keeps State Prisoner’s Challenge Alive to DOC’s Use of Expunged Convictions in Classification Decision, by Matthew Clarke
- $825,000 Paid to Estate of New Mexico Jail Detainee Who Died from Heroin Withdrawal, by Matthew Clarke
- Oregon Prison Superintendent Pleads Guilty to Drunk Driving and Interfering With Arrest, by Panagioti Tsolkas
- Eleventh Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity to Jail Guards Who “Did Nothing” in Face of Florida Detainee’s Suicide Threats, by David Reutter
- New York OIG Report Reveals 1,600 State Prisoners Punished Over Faulty Drug Tests, by Anthony Accurso
- $1.4 Million Paid by King County, Washington to Settle Juvenile Solitary Confinement Class Action, by Mark Wilson
- A First Glance in Rear-View Mirror at Pandemic, by Kevin Bliss, Matthew Clarke, Ashleigh Dye, Keith Sanders
- After $10 Million Settlement in Pennsylvania Jail Mugshot Class-Action, Fewer-Than-Expected Claims Leave Windfall for Expungement Program, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit Affirms Use Of “Some Evidence” Standard in Reviewing Federal Prisoner’s Disciplinary Violations, by Anthony Accurso
- Kentucky Judge Gives Ex-Jail Guard Convicted of Sexually Assaulting Prisoner Chance to Re-Enlist in Army to Avoid Jail Time, by Keith Sanders
- $177,500 in Settlements Reached with Detainees Assaulted by Guards at Pennsylvania Jail, by Ashleigh Dye
- HRDC Sues Centurion for Records Related to Vermont Prisoner Care, by David Reutter
- $350,000 Paid to Victim Beaten in Jail by California Sheriff’s Deputy, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Florida and California Experiments Use Direct Cash Assistance to Newly Released Prisoners to Combat Recidivism, by Mark Wilson
- Oregon Court Rules Prisoner’s Admissions in Disciplinary Hearing Violate Miranda, But Harmlessly, by Jacob Barrett
- $35,000 Settlement Paid by California County After Jail Death of Elderly, Mentally Ill Detainee, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- Celebrity Prisoners Profit from NFT Sales of Their Work While Incarcerated, by Edward Lyon
- Idaho Supreme Court Finds Ladderless Bunks a “Sound Discretionary Decision,” But Says Resulting Injury Could Give Rise to Negligence Claim, by Jacob Barrett
- $40,000 Settlement Reached in HRDC Challenge to Nebraska Prison Censorship Policy, by David Reutter
- Arizona Supreme Court Clarifies Rules for Asserting Attorney-Client Privilege for Communications from Jail, Including Texts Using Tablets, by Matthew Clarke
- HRDC Sues Indiana Sheriff Over Censorship at County Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- Final Settlement Agreement Approved in COVID-19 Class Action at California Immigration Detention Center, by Matthew Clarke
- Settlement Improves ADA Accessibility Features, Health Care and Training in Florida Prisons, by Kevin Bliss
- Ohio Supreme Court Partially Reinstates Prisoner’s Pro Se Public Records Request, Sets Damages for Denial at $1,000, by Matthew Clarke
- Life Sentences Commuted for Two Massachusetts Prisoners Convicted of First-Degree Murder, by Keith Sanders
- Mentally and Physically Disabled Texas Woman Hospitalized After Mistreatment at Jail, by Ashleigh Dye
- News in Brief
More from Matthew Clarke:
- Idaho Supreme Court Holds Indigent Parents Have Constitutional Right to Counsel at Public Expense, July 1, 2026
- Free Phone Calls Saved Prisoners and Their Families More than $600 Million, Report Finds, July 1, 2026
- California Appeals Court Holds Defendant Cannot Be Penalized for Failing to Appear at Sentencing When He Was Being Held in Another County’s Jail on Preexisting Charges, July 1, 2026
- SCOTUS Reverses Mississippi Capital Conviction, July 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit Upholds $33 Million Jury Award in Suit Over Detainee’s Horrific Death in Oklahoma County Jail, July 1, 2026
- Texas Prison System Bans Prisoners from Receiving Hardback and Used Books, July 1, 2026
- CoreCivic’s Long Record of Abuse and Neglect in Tennessee, June 1, 2026
- Dallas County Jail Deaths, Many Preventable, Dramatically Increase Under Sheriff Marian Brown, June 1, 2026
- Ninth Circuit Lets Stand Ruling That Federal Prisoners’ Gradually Accumulated Savings Are Subject to Restitution Turnover, June 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Reinstates Illinois Prisoner’s Lawsuit Against Prison Dental Staff, June 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- He Died in a Florida Jail. The Company in Charge Should Have Sent Him to the Hospital, Experts Say., July 1, 2026. Armor Correctional Health Services, Systemic Medical Neglect, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Tenth Circuit Upholds $33 Million Jury Award in Suit Over Detainee’s Horrific Death in Oklahoma County Jail, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Failure to Train/Supervise, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Three Women Died at a Michigan Prison in Less than a Month, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- After Spoliation Sanction, CoreCivic Settles Suit Over Suicide in New Mexico ICE Lockup, July 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Discovery, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides.
- CoreCivic’s Long Record of Abuse and Neglect in Tennessee, June 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Systemic Medical Neglect, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Over $2 Million Paid by Otero County and VitalCore Health Strategies for New Mexico Jail Suicide, June 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Suicides, Immunity - Sovereign/Municipal, Deliberate Indifference.
- $112,500 Paid to Former New Mexico Prisoner Denied Public Records of Excessive Force by Guards, June 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Settlements, Public Records Act, False Imprisonment.
- Settlement Reached in Mental Health Care Class-Action at San Diego County Jails, June 1, 2026. Settlements, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Class Actions, Administrative Detention/Segregation, Inadequate Health Care Facilities.
- New York City Reaches Settlements Totaling Nearly $5.2 Million with Estates of Two Fatal Methadone Overdose Victims Detained on Rikers Island, June 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Drug Overdose, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Pepper Spraying Incident Prompts Policy Change at Washington Women’s Prison, June 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Settlements, Staff Training, Cruel and Unusual Punishment.

