ECBAWM’s settlement of a tragic case involving the death of 21-year-old Joshua England in an Oklahoma prison from untreated appendicitis was featured in a Business Insider series.  The six-part series of articles examines a five-year sample of Eighth Amendment lawsuits alleging prison abuses.  According to the series, in which 1,500 federal cases were examined, the reporters “uncovered a near evisceration of protections for this nation’s 1.2 million prisoners, largely propelled by legal standards and laws put into place at the height of the war on drugs.” According to this analysis, “plaintiffs prevailed in only 11 cases—less than 1%.”

The article highlights ECBAWM’s and co-counsel’s litigation of Joshua England’s case as a rare example of a plaintiff prevailing in these cases.  “Five years after England’s death, the Oklahoma legislature approved a $1.05 million settlement with his mother, Christy Smith, to resolve a claim under the Eighth Amendment, which bars ‘cruel and unusual punishments.’” Joshua’s mother and stepfather are featured in the article discussing Joshua’s death and their quest for accountability.

Joshua England’s mother Christy Smith and stepfather Darren Smith were represented by ECBAWM attorneys Katie Rosenfeld and Emily Wanger.