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A Tennessee family is suing the Alabama Department of Corrections alleging that the body of a family member, who died while in custody, was returned to them without his heart.
Brandon Dotson, 43, was found dead last month at the Ventress Correctional Facility in Barbour County.
He had been in prison for 19 years as part of a 99-year sentence for a robbery and parole violation conviction in Lawrence County.
His apparent sudden death occurred on the same day he was to be considered for parole.
According to a federal lawsuit against the Alabama Department of Corrections, Dotson’s body was missing a heart and his body was so decomposed that the family was unable to hold an open-casket funeral.
Brandon Dotson, 43, was found dead in mid-November at the Ventress Correctional Facility in Barbour County after serving 19 years for robbery.
His family says that when Dotson’s body was returned to them for burial, his heart was missing and they are now suing the Alabama Department of Corrections.
The disturbing discovery was only noted by an independent pathologist the family hired in Birmingham to determine the cause of death.
The pathologist noted that “the heart was missing from the thoracic cavity of Mr. Dotson’s body,” making it difficult to determine how Dotson died.
Costume alleges wrongful death and cites prison officials’ failure to safeguard Dotson, neglect of his medical needs and mishandling of his remains.
The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount of money.
“The Alabama Department of Corrections, or an agent responsible for performing the autopsy or transporting the body to his family, inexplicably and without the required permission of Mr. Dotson’s next of kin, removed and retained Mr. Dotson’s heart,” is stated in the complaint. state.
The lawsuit, filed by Dotson’s daughter, Audrey Marie Dotson, and her mother, Audrey South, also claims that Dotson’s body was not released to the family until five days after his death.
The complaint names ADOC Chief Deputy Commissioner of Corrections Greg Lovelace, left, and Ventress Correctional Center Warden Karen Williams, right, as defendants.
The lawsuit alleges wrongful death and cites the fact that correctional officers at Ventress Correctional Facility, pictured, failed to safeguard Dotson, neglected his medical needs and mishandled his remains.
The Dotson family’s attorney, Lauren Faraino, called it “very grotesque, disrespectful and unacceptable” to remove a vital organ from someone “without the family knowing.”
The family said when they looked at Dotson’s body they saw “bruises on the back of his neck and excessive swelling on his head.”
‘The accused performed an autopsy on the deceased and removed his heart, thus concealing the true cause of death. “In taking this action, defendants intentionally or recklessly destroyed or altered key evidence that deprived plaintiff of the ability to determine how the decedent died through an independent autopsy,” the lawsuit states.
‘The heart is a vital organ that would provide essential evidence to assess the cause of death. Without the heart, the plaintiff cannot obtain an accurate and complete determination of the circumstances surrounding the decedent’s death.’
The Dotson family’s attorney, Lauren Faraino, called it “very grotesque, disrespectful and unacceptable” to remove a vital organ from someone “without the family knowing.”
The family believes the students may have given the heart to the University of Alabama Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine for medical research purposes.
The lawsuit alleges how Dotson had called for help days before he died, saying another inmate was violently attacking him.
The lawsuit also claims that when Dotson’s brother contacted the prison to retrieve Dotson’s body, the warden “expressed surprise,” adding that many families do not collect the bodies of inmates and are sometimes not notifies them of his death.
‘Amid mourning Brandon Dotson’s untimely death, his family is left fighting to get the most basic answers about how he died and why the Alabama Department of Corrections returned his body without his heart. Right now we don’t know where his heart is. It is the responsibility of the State to keep those in its prisons safe from harm,’ Faraino said.
‘For days, the family attempted to claim his body after submitting the proper paperwork as soon as they were alerted to his untimely death. “Ultimately, his body was released to his family almost a week later, on November 21, 2023. At that time, the body had not been properly stored and was severely decomposed,” the lawsuit states.
“Despite the family’s initial wishes, they had no choice but to hold a closed-casket funeral.”
“It was five days before the body was released,” South said. Moulton Advertiser. “I saw it on the sixth day, but they didn’t want me to see it because they wanted to do something to make it look a little better because it was horrible.
“I wouldn’t even say that was humane, how bad my son looked.”
Dotson’s body was so decomposed that the family was unable to hold an open-casket funeral.
The lawsuit adds: “To date, no one has explained to the family why Mr. Dotson’s heart was missing when his body was handed over to them” and the plaintiffs “do not know where Mr. Dotson’s heart is currently located, nor in their possession.” whose”. ‘
The family is now searching for answers and suggests two possible scenarios could have occurred. One was that Dotson was subjected to violence inside the facility or that he had access to drugs.
Dotson’s mother and daughter filed the lawsuit to “seek the immediate return of Mr. Dotson’s heart” so that the vital organ “can be examined by an autopsy pathologist and then cremated or properly buried.”
The lawsuit details how Dotson called for help days before he died, saying another inmate was violently attacking him.
The lawsuit also notes that severe overcrowding in Alabama prisons also led to a lack of supervision of inmates.
‘No prison staff were available to prevent the abuse Mr. Dotson suffered and the constant, unlimited access to drugs he had, or to rescue Mr. Dotson in time to save his life, or if they were available, they ignored warning signs and direct requests for help when they had every opportunity to intervene and prevent Mr. Dotson’s death,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit also claims that when Dotson’s brother contacted the prison to retrieve Dotson’s body, the warden “expressed surprise,” adding that many families do not collect the bodies of inmates and are sometimes not notifies them of his death.
The complaint names DOC Commissioner John Q. Hamm, DOC Chief Deputy Commissioner of Corrections Greg Lovelace, Ventress Correctional Facility Warden Karen Williams, Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences Director Angelo Della Manna, to several unidentified prison employees and to the University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink. Faculty of Medicine as defendants.
The Alabama Department of Corrections has said it does not comment on pending litigation, but issued a statement about the incident last month.
‘On Thursday, November 16, 2023, inmate Brandon Dotson was found unresponsive in his cell at the Ventress Correctional Center. He was taken to the Medical Care Unit where medical staff performed life-saving measures. Unfortunately, Dotson could not be revived and was pronounced deceased by the attending doctor.
‘Dotson, 43, was serving a 99-year sentence for Robbery III in Lawrence County.’
In 2022, 260 inmates died in Alabama prison custody, according to the lawsuit. The figure is the highest in the history of the department. The death rate in 2023 is similar.
The complaint also references the ongoing lawsuit filed against the Alabama prison system by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging unconstitutional conditions.
Last week, Alabama officials released statistics showing that assaults in state prisons increased by more than 41 percent in 2023 compared to 2022.
Of the 2,073 attacks, 1,578 were between inmates and 495 of them were reported as attacks by inmates on prison staff.
In September alone there were 137 attacks among inmates and 42 attacks on prison staff.
According to the DOC’s most recent report, in September, Ventress was designed to hold up to 650 inmates, but currently holds 1,237.