Family claims wrongful death
Canon Daniels died in 2019 after complaining of illness in jail
The Butte County jail is facing three lawsuits in the last year, two of them in relation to inmates being attacked by other inmates, while one is a wrongful death suit claiming the jail did not take care of one of its inmates. This is the final part of a series looking at the cases.
OROVILLE — The Butte County Sheriff’s Office was sued along with Sacramento County in February 2020 by the family of Canon Hugh Daniels in a wrongful death suit.
Daniels died Feb. 11, 2019, and the lawsuit was filed by his wife, Ariel Rostamo, his mother Susan Daniels and his father Joseph Daniels, IV.
The suit was filed after Butte County, along with Sacramento County, which was also sued, denied a claim for $32.5 million.
According to the lawsuit, Daniels, 24, was suffering from a medical illness when he went into Sacramento County Jail on Christmas Day in
2018 on a probation violation.
The suit said that when he was booked in the Sacramento County Jail. Daniels told officers he was feeling ill, and his appearance displayed obvious physical distress.
The suit alleges sometime later that month or in early January he was sent to Butte County Jail.
The family claims at the point when Butte County took in Daniels, a receiving form was filled out concerning his medical status.
The lawsuit also claims
that despite his repeated request for help and for medical treatment he received none.
The lawsuit alleges on Jan. 5, 2019. that he called his mother and told her he was suffering from a 104 degree temperature.
Three days later, and 14 days after his arrest, Daniels was sent to Oroville Hospital and admitted to the ICU with life-threatening medical additions.
According to the suit, Butte County released him from custody on Jan. 12 and his belongings were sent to Oroville hospital.
The lawsuit says on Jan. 15, Daniels underwent a tracheotomy surgery, and on Jan. 17 was sent to UC Davis
Medical Center.
It was then that he was placed into a medically induced coma for treatment.
The lawsuit says once he got to UC Davis, doctors had said his illness have progressed to a point where he could not be saved as three of the four medical conditions which contributed to his death had been present for weeks.
Daniels died Feb. 11, 2019 just three days before 25th birthday according to this suit.
The suit claims that that the jail failed to adequately respond to Keenan‘s request for medical attention when they knew or they should’ve known he was sick.
It also claims that Butte County Jail either refused or failed to transfer Daniels to a location where he could be better monitored and they left him unattended.
Butte and Sacramento County deny those allegations
In a status update filed,
Oct. 29, 2020, Butte County said that at all times its staff responded to the medical attention needed.
Butte County says its intake staff checked cannons final health indicators, therefore they say staffed properly.
In the filing, Butte County says Daniels reported back pain on Jan. 5, 2019. The county says he was referred to the medical unit for assessment, they also claim in the filing that he exhibited suicidal tendencies between Jan. 6 and Jan. 8, so staff followed the suicide protocol and policy to kept him safe from harm.
They said it was on Jan. 8 that Daniels began to exhibit abnormal vital health indicators and they summoned medical staff who determined that he would need further medical attention.
Butte County says they transferred him to Oroville Hospital for treatment and he was eventually sent to
UC Davis.
Butte County says at no time during his detainment was he not provided with adequate medical attention or deprived of his civil rights as a detainee.
In that same filing, when Sacramento County booked him into jail for an outstanding arrest warrant, Daniels complained of feeling ill and demonstrated physical distress
when he arrived in Sacramento County Jail.
However, Sacramento County denied that he made repeated requests for medical assistance while he was at Sacramento County Jail.
Canon was transferred to Butte County on Jan. 2, 2019.
According to that same status update, a trial is set for Aug. 17, 2022 unless some kind off out of court settlement is made.