By Pablo Lopez and Barbara Anderson
The Fresno Bee
FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. — Four Fresno County Jail inmates filed a class-action lawsuit Tuesday, claiming Sheriff Margaret Mims maintains an unsafe jail and fails to provide basic health care.
According to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Fresno, inmates are regularly denied treatment for life-threatening illnesses, severe mental health symptoms and serious dental conditions.
There are not enough medical personnel -- doctors, nurses, therapists and social workers -- to provide adequate care for more than 2,300 inmates, the lawsuit says. As a result of the understaffing, inmates can wait weeks to months before being examined by clinicians.
Inmates also have been subjected to violence due to defects in the jail’s design, operation and staffing, the lawsuit says.
Full Story: Suit: Fresno County inmates face needless dangers