The district court prevented Reginald Clark from holding several prison officials accountable for their profound neglect and disregard for his medical emergency, despite evidence that their inaction resulted in permanent injury. The MacArthur Justice is advocating for prisoners like Mr. Clark, whose serious medical needs are systematically categorized as non-emergencies and disregarded by the lower courts, ensuring their inability to hold prison officials accountable for their neglect.
While incarcerated in a North Carolina prison, Mr. Clark went to a nurse to report his injured foot. The nurse ordered x-rays – which were not completed for over a month – and Mr. Clark was seen by a doctor who scheduled an MRI. However, nothing else was done by prison medical officials for nearly two months, despite Mr. Clark’s constant complaints about the injury and accompanying pain.
When Mr. Clark was transferred to another prison in North Carolina, he submitted numerous medical requests, but a prison official cancelled several of them. Mr. Clark was given no medical treatment or medication to alleviate the pain while he waited for the MRI. His foot had become grossly swollen with virtually unbearable pain that rendered him unable to stand or walk. Mr. Clark repeatedly reported this, asking for a boot, cane, or wheelchair, and was denied all three by prison officials.
When Mr. Clark finally underwent the MRI, he was diagnosed with a tear in his Achilles tendon. The lack of timely treatment left him with permanent damage in his right foot that forces him to walk with a limp and sometimes wear a boot. His lack of balance due to his right foot injury led to a fall that resulted in a tear in his Achilles tendon and a chipped bone in his foot – an injury that was also not properly treated.
When Mr. Clark filed a complaint against the prison officials who failed to treat him in a proper and timely manner, the district court dismissed it, asserting he had failed to state a claim against the named defendants.
The MacArthur Justice Center represents Mr. Clark on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
UPDATE
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision to dismiss claims against two prison officials but vacated the remainder of the district court’s order, allowing Mr. Clark to move forward with his claims against the rest of the named defendants.