By Trevor Maxwell
Portland Press Herald
PORTLAND, Maine — A Buxton woman whose son died in the Cumberland County Jail two years ago has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the jail, its medical services contractor and Maine Medical Center.
Paul Victor Galambos III, 26, died on Dec. 12, 2008, in a cell in the jail’s medical unit.
The lawsuit, filed by Katherine Cady in federal court, alleges that the jail’s medical staff failed to properly treat Galambos for psychosis, and failed to protect him as he battered himself against the floor, walls and toilet in his cell over the course of three days.
When Galambos was taken to Maine Med on Dec. 10, 2008, he had a spinal fracture, rib fractures, bruises, head injuries and excessive fluid around his right lung, according to the lawsuit. He was returned to the jail the next day to await transportation to the state psychiatric hospital in Augusta.
He collapsed and died in his cell, from blood clots that had developed in his legs as a result of his injuries.
The state Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a suicide.
Over the next two years, Cady and her sister, attorney Linda Cady of Yarmouth, gathered records and notes from Maine Med, the jail and Correctional Medical Services Inc., the St. Louis-based contractor that has provided health services at the jail since 2001.
Based on those records, the family contends that Galambos’ death was foreseeable and preventable.
''It’s a complicated story, and it’s a tragic story,’' Linda Cady said Wednesday. ''All we were told is that he had injured himself, and that’s what caused his death. Until I was able to look at all these records and piece together the story. Then, we were really shocked.’'
For the family, this is about justice for Victor, certainly, but also for all mentally ill prisoners or inmates who are not getting proper care,’' she said.
Diane North, administrator for Correctional Medical Services at the jail, said she has not seen the lawsuit and could not comment.
John Lamb, spokesman for Maine Med, said the hospital has not yet been served with the lawsuit. Any complaint against the hospital is subject to review by a state screening panel, to determine whether the claim should go forward in court.
Galambos was born in Florida, moved to Maine as a toddler with his family and attended schools in Buxton. He played football and baseball, and loved to play guitar and compose music. Galambos moved to Portland in 2001.
State records show that Galambos was convicted of several petty crimes beginning in 2002, including theft, forgery and criminal mischief. He was sentenced to two days in jail and ordered to pay $32 in restitution for a theft in 2005.
On Aug. 3, 2008, Galambos allegedly tried to take a man’s car keys in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven store in South Portland, and hit him on the head with a padlock when the man refused.
Police said Galambos then went into the convenience store and stole money from the register. He was arrested minutes later while drinking at a bar across the street.
Bail was set at $25,000 cash or $100,000 property bond, and Galambos remained in custody until his death.
Linda Cady said Galambos struggled with mental illness for several years, and was diagnosed at various times with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and antisocial disorder.
''These conditions had been treated more or less continuously with antipsychotic prescription drugs through Spring Harbor hospital and its community ACCESS program prior to Aug. 3, 2008, and then by Correctional Medical Services while detained,’' Cady wrote in the lawsuit.
Galambos signed a slip at the jail on Nov. 15, 2008, refusing to take the antipsychotic medication Zyprexa. He was concerned about weight gain and wanted to find an alternative drug.
The lawsuit claims the Zyprexa was discontinued on Dec. 1, 2008. Over the next 12 days, the lawsuit alleges, Galambos became psychotic and his mental condition deteriorated rapidly. Notes by Correctional Medical Services staffers indicated that he was delusional, suicidal and unable to interact with the guards or medical staff.
On Dec. 2, he stuck a pencil into his neck. Galambos was not badly injured, but he was treated at Maine Med.
On the afternoon of Dec. 8, 2008, while on suicide watch in the jail’s maximum security unit, Galambos climbed onto a metal table in his cell and did a ''swan dive’’ onto the concrete floor, according to the lawsuit. He hit his head, right shoulder and back.
Two guards saw the incident, which was recorded by a security camera, the lawsuit claims.
On Dec. 10, Galambos again intentionally fell to the floor in his cell, with no effort to break his fall. The medical staff saw that Galambos was incoherent and unable to control his bladder. He was taken by ambulance to Maine Med, where he was treated overnight.
He was discharged at 5 p.m. on Dec. 11 and returned to the jail. Galambos was supposed to be transferred to the Riverview Psychiatric Center on Dec. 12. But after eating breakfast in his cell at 7 that morning, he collapsed and died.
From Dec. 2 — when Galambos stabbed himself with the pencil — until his death, no one contacted anyone in Galambos’ family about his mental state or his injuries, Linda Cady said. The family was notified about three hours after his death.
''That is one of the biggest pieces of this,’' Cady said. ''If we had known what was happening, we could have done something.’'
Cady, who practices elder law, has not filed any such lawsuits in the past, but felt confident enough about the process to move forward. The lawsuit seeks damages for wrongful death and violations of state and federal civil rights.
''Defendants acted with reckless disregard for the health and safety of Galambos, failing to take common-sense precautions and-or obvious steps to address his escalating episodes of self-harm,’' the lawsuit says. ''They took no measures to change his cell environment or consult with other professionals for advice and direction in response to his individual psychiatric needs, despite the clear and known evidence that the adjustments to his medications were not effective.’'
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