Chester County Prison
PHILADELPHIA – Chester County will pay $700,000 to settle a lawsuit blaming it for the suicide of an inmate in 2021.
An agreement filed with the federal court in Philadelphia shows the daughters of Kenneth Pettit will receive barely half of that amount after paying Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck $280,000 in fees and more than $67,000 in costs.
Judge Gerald Pappert approved the settlement yesterday before he was ever able to rule on motions for summary judgment. The attorneys fee figure is justified, as the case concerned conditions in Chester County Prison, which “are clearly matters of great importance.”
Pettit had a history mental health problems that were known to the county because of his previous detentions at the prison. He had a history of drug use, and his father had hanged himself.
On April 24, 2021, his cellmate reported that Pettit had a sheet around his neck and was trying to kill himself. According to a staff report, Pettit said, “I can’t do this anymore.” He told medical staff he “did not want to live anymore” while sobbing before a nurse.
He remained in psychiatric observation until his release a week later, but he was recommitted on Oct. 2, 2021. An intake form recorded “No” on whether there was a history of suicide attempts in his family and whether he had ever attempted suicide.
With a “suicide score” of 1 for his drug use, he was sent to general population. The suit said he received no medical attention before hanging himself four days later, and that in those days he made 16 calls to his girlfriend and brother to discuss his financial, legal and mental health problems.
“Notably, on his first call during the October detainment, he told Danielle ‘I’m done with life… I think I’m just going to quit life,’” the suit says. “On Oct. 4, he told Danielle that he was ‘about to kill myself earlier… barely holding on.’ On Oct. 6, five hours before his suicide, Pettit told Danielle that he was ‘barely holding it together.’”
On Oct. 6, 2021, he placed a food tray on a nearby table and retreated to his cell. A corrections officer went on a dinner break around 5:30 p.m. then found Pettit with his legs and torso slumped over his bunk at 6:07.
The suit adds that Chester County and health-care provider PrimeCare “were well aware of their failures to appropriately treat numerous prisoners like Pettit suffering from mental illness and substance abuse” and as a result, numerous other suicides of inmates at the facility had previously taken place.
