Vigo County will pay $100,000 to the estate of an inmate after he died in jail from COVID-19 in 2020. The parties reached an agreement in a Jan. 26 status conference.
Frederick Whitlock, 56, was an inmate at the former Vigo County Jail in Terre Haute when he began to show COVID symptoms. He complained of fevers, loss of taste and fatigue a month before his death.
Read more: Federal judge finds Vigo County Jail conditions unconstitutional
Latasha Housley, Whitlock's daughter and a legal representative of his estate, sued in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. She alleged Whitlock died because Sheriff John Plasse and other defendants failed to provide adequate medical care.
On Dec. 4, 2020, Whitlock collapsed while in line for breakfast. He collapsed a second time after he was taken back to his cell. He was then transported to a Terre Haute hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy later confirmed his death was due to COVID.
Court documents allege no inmates were tested for COVID before Whitlock’s death, despite Whitlock’s and other inmates’ complaints. Also preceding his death, Plasse and another jail representative made a statement that no inmates had COVID.
After Whitlock’s death, all inmates were tested for COVID, and a majority of them tested positive.
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Housley vs Plasse et al Pla... by Indiana Public Media News
Several other inmate’s COVID lawsuits were settled last year. WFIU/WTIU received the settlement amounts through a public records request.
- Nathan Epple, Whitlock’s cellmate, received $8,875 in his settlement in April 2023.
- Floyd Cheesman, who assisted in moving Whitlock after he collapsed, received $8,875 in his settlement in Feb. 2023.
- Justin Gasway, Paul Aubin and Dyllon Ware each received $7,500 in May 2023.
