Former inmate sues Livingston County, claims delayed medical attention cost him toes

LIVINGSTON COUNTY — A resident from Stockbridge is suing Livingston County and others after he allegedly lost all the remaining toes on his left foot because those who arrested him failed to provide treatment.

The defendants listed in the complaint are Livingston County, the Livingston County Jail and Sheriff's Office, the Milford Police Department, Milford Township, and individuals from each organization.

Jon Messer, 39, was being rushed to the hospital in a 2003 Chevrolet Silverado on July 12, 2021, when the driver was pulled over by Milford Police for not having a visible license plate.

During the stop, the officer ran Messer’s name, despite the fact that he was a passenger and not the owner of the truck, the lawsuit said. The officer found Messer had a felony warrant out of Howell for receiving or concealing stolen property.

Outside a mobile home community on E. Maple Road in Milford, Messer and the driver “begged (the officers) not to detain (Messer) because they were rushing (him) to the hospital,” according to the complaint filed in Michigan Eastern District Court on July 5, first reported by MLive .

Messer allegedly informed the officers he'd recently had toes amputated due to complications from his diabetes, and said they were rushing to the hospital because he feared he was going to lose more. He told officers he recognized the symptoms from his last amputation.

The officers arrested Messer anyway, the lawsuit said, and he was transported to the Livingston County Jail.

The complaint described the injury as a “growing open ulcer on (Messer's) left foot under his toes.”

In booking, the lawsuit said, the officer made note of Messer’s diabetes and his foot injury, but he still did not receive medical attention.

His foot was “packed” by a jail nurse and, while he did receive insulin while incarcerated, Messer said he didn't receive additional medical attention, despite repeatedly asking for it.

“(His) wound on his foot was a clearly visible open wound, which was also obviously infected, odorous, turning colors, and oozing," according to documents.

Four days after his arrest, Messer finally saw the jail doctor, who recommended he be “checked out.”

The lawsuit claims the defendants intentionally delayed bringing Messer to the hospital by nearly an hour. When he was finally brought to Trinity Health Livingston Hospital on July 16, 2021, he said, the hospital didn’t have any doctors present who could treat him and recommended he be transferred to Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Ann Arbor.

All of the remaining toes on Messer’s left foot were amputated. Then, he was sent back to jail.

“(Messer) was returned to (the) Livingston County Jail because Livingston County did not want to pay the additional cost of (his) medical treatment, and a deputy escort at the hospital, all the while knowing the doctors ordered that (Messer) stay hospitalized,” the complaint alleged.

Messer was jailed for another 15 days and claims, in that time, he did not receive antibiotics or pain medication in a timely manner and, when he did get antibiotics, he was left hooked up for longer than he was supposed to be.

Messer allegedly was prescribed another medication by the hospital but wasn't informed, and the jail didn't dispense it. Upon his release on July 27, 2021, he was given one dose of his medication instead of six, so Messer had to go to Henry Ford Hospital to get a new prescription.

Messer claimed he was handcuffed to a bed while receiving medical care, despite presenting no risk to others, and said he was forced to take fentanyl when his pain medications were “intentionally decreased.”

Messer argues his fourth, fifth, eighth and fourteenth amendment rights were violated; he was subject to unlawful and prolonged search and seizure, and was the victim of gross negligence.

"Jails are supposed to protect their inmates," Messer's attorney, Angelle Rothis, told The Daily. "The constitution says prisoners have a right to have reasonable and necessary medical care. This was a known condition because he told them he was diabetic. He told them he lost toes. He told them he (could) see the signs that he's on the way to losing his last toes, which is very significant for a physical worker, and they intentionally and knowingly and recklessly neglected the necessary medical care, and for that, we want justice."

Messer is seeking unspecified compensation for the loss of his toes and the health and financial effects that loss has caused.

Allison Nalepa, communications manager for Livingston County, told The Daily the county doesn’t comment on pending litigation. Milford Township also declined comment.

— Contact reporter Tess Ware at tware@livingstondaily.com.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Former inmate sues Livingston County, claims delayed medical attention cost him toes