PHILADELPHIA – Wayne County’s moldy jail killed an inmate, a new federal lawsuit in Pennsylvania alleges.
The Jan. 7 case filed on behalf of the Estate of Frank Oliveras raises a number of issues with the Wayne County Correctional Facility and blames them for his death last year from pneumonia.
Oliveras was detained in late 2024 with a history of serious cardiac and respiratory illnesses that were exacerbated by the condition of the jail, the suit says.
“Frank ultimately died from pneumonia inside WCCF, having been denied the medical care his condition plainly required,” the lawsuit says.
“He is survived by his wife and three daughters, one of whom is completely disabled and for whom Frank served as the primary caretaker.”
Oliveras was 65 years old when he was committed to WCCF in October 2024, bringing with him conditions of multiple sclerosis, COPD, coronary artery disease and diabetes, among other ailments.
Wayne County was aware of the mold problem in its jail for years, the suit claims. On Jan. 16, 2025, Oliveras needed an X-ray because of shortness of breath. It revealed pneumonia, which combined with his other conditions, created a danger that his oxygen-saturation levels would drop, the suit says.
However, Oliveras was not transferred to a hospital. Treatment at the jail included albuterol and antibiotics, but three days after the X-ray, he was wheezing and his oxygen-saturation rate was 94%.
Nurses were “deliberately indifferent” to Oliveras’ need to be sent to a hospital, the case says. His oxygen-saturation rate dropped all the way to 80%.
He was transferred to a medical housing unit but was supervised by an inmate who failed to check in every 15 minutes, the suit says. On Jan. 31, he was discovered sitting on his bed and leaning against a wall, unresponsive. Resuscitation failed, and Oliveras would die.
“Throughout the course of Frank’s incarceration at WCCF, his family routinely called the jail to request that Frank be transferred to the hospital which Defendants refused to do and is reflected in the Wayne County medical examiner’s report,” the suit says.
“What is more, several inmates petitioned Defendants to transfer Frank to the hospital which they likewise ignored.”
Dylan Hastings of Strokovsky, LLC in Philadelphia represents the plaintiff.
