Pennsylvania Man Files Brain Injury Lawsuit against Prison Staff

Butler, PAA Butler, Pennsylvania native who was put in jail two years ago but was discharged after just one day due to a severe brain injury has filed a lawsuit accusing the prison staff of causing the injury.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the lawsuit claims 35-year-old Devon C. Kuhn is currently receiving 24-hour care at a rehabilitation center after his intellectual abilities were severely compromised by the injury.

While prison officials reportedly told Kuhn's family that the brain injury was the result of a fall from a toilet, the lawsuit claims the injuries appear to stem from a beating. Kuhn reportedly has no recollection of the moments prior to the injury occurring, according to the news source.

Kuhn, who was arrested in May of 2009 after being accused of attempting to steal a bicycle, was allegedly brought from the jail to Butler County Memorial Hospital the following day, then transported via helicopter to Allegheny General Hospital.

The man's $1,000 bond was then reportedly changed to a release on his own recognizance, to allegedly allow the county to avoid having to pay medical expenses related to the injury, claims the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, which claims the man was forced to undergo surgery for a brain bruise and now has a permanent brain shunt, seeks compensation for medical expenses, economic losses and physical suffering, according to the news source.

Brain injury lawsuits filed against authority figures are not limited to Pennsylvania, however, as a previously deported illegal immigrant recently filed a lawsuit against the federal government claiming he suffered a brain injury when port officers used excessive force at the US Port of Entry in San Luis, Arizona.

The Yuma Sun reports that the US Customs and Border Protection account claims 41-year-old Jose Gutierrez was attempting to re-enter the US through the port when he was brought to another area for a follow-up examination. The agency claims the man fell and hit his head on the floor while he attempted to escape the port and go back to Mexico.

Gutierrez, however, claims that the brain injury is a result of the actions of port officers.

"There are several things that don't seem right to us," explained Los Angeles resident Shena Wilson, who Gutierrez had been living with. "It can't be that a fall like that would have left him so beaten up. When I went to Phoenix to see him, his head was very swelled and he had signs of blows on various parts of the body."