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A group of Portland, Oregon inmates filed a class action lawsuit against the county, sheriff, and certain officials, claiming that tear gas and other toxins deployed during nightly protests in the city this summer seeped into their cells, but they were left to endure the effects without help.
The lead plaintiffs, three current and former residents of Multnomah County Inverness Jail, claim that the ventilation system began pumping tear gas and smoke in from a protest for racial justice after the killing of George Floyd on May 29, 2020. They say that they were subject to the chemicals seeping in for a number of subsequent nights, between May 30 and June 9; however, they were not informed about the protests and accuse county officials of imposing a “media blackout” during that time.
“Over the summer of 2020 in the United States of America within a global pandemic, the men and women locked in the small concrete cells of the Multnomah County Detention Center, most convicted of no crime, were repeatedly and horrifically tear gassed,” alleges the complaint. “Night after night, Multnomah County jail deputies ignored cries for help, stopped responding to emergency calls, and left the men and women trapped in their cells to suffer.”
According to the class action lawsuit, matters only got worse when federal agents were sent by the Trump administration in July 2020, ostensibly to assist police with continuing protests. The inmates say the use of tear gas near the jail dramatically increased and they were unable to escape the noxious gases.
“On or about July 1st, 2020, President Trump sent federal agents to Portland [to] unleash unprecedented, sustained violence and intimidation on its people,” alleges the complaint. “Federal agents dramatically increased the use of toxic tear gas and other chemical agents, blanketing numerous blocks surrounding the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse and the Multnomah County Justice Center in a cloud of noxious gas and smoke every night through July 30th.”
The inmates allege that they have and will likely suffer serious health effects from their exposure to chemicals deployed near the jail during 2020.
“Prolonged exposure or a large dose of gas may cause blindness, glaucoma, or immediate death due to severe chemical burns to throat and lungs and respiratory failure,” asserts the class action lawsuit. “There is also anecdotal evidence that tear gas may cause reproductive health concerns for people with uteruses including miscarriages.”
According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, the lawyers representing the plaintiffs say that there are potentially hundreds of inmates who were exposed to toxic gases during the summer.
“Detainees and inmates were left alone to suffer the effects, including coughing, gagging, inability to breathe, irritation of their eyes, and incredible fear,” states the complaint. “Many believed the building was on fire, and that they would be left there to die.”
Indeed, the complaint alleges callous actions taken by corrections officers, including failing to respond to pleas for help as toxic gas poured into the dorms, turning off emergency call buttons, and leaving inmates to improvise ways to breathe in less fumes on their own.
“Jail deputies and supervisors alike treated detainees callously, inhumanely, and with deliberate indifference verging on torment,” alleges the class action lawsuit contending that “[o]ne Deputy Sheriff mused, ‘How are you complaining about smoke in your lungs when you all smoke meth?’”
The plaintiffs allege that they and other inmates’ subsequent complaints about the air quality in the jail were also ignored. They say that jail officials never responded to the complaints.
According to the Oregonian, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office told reporters in July that the jail had suffered a “decrease in air quality” during that time.
“We care deeply for the adults in custody and have a legal and moral obligation to protect them, as well as dozens of corrections deputies and county staff that provide rehabilitation, support and health services around the clock,” Sheriff Mike Reese reportedly stated in an email to reporters.
A lawyer representing the plaintiffs told reporters that the county’s actions toward the plaintiffs during the tear gas exposure were a violation of the Eight Amendment of the Constitution that prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. He told reporters that he hopes the class action lawsuit will result in policy changes in the jail system that will protect inmates from such treatment in the future.
Have you been exposed to tear gas? Are you concerned about its health effects? Tell us what you think in the comment section below.
The lead plaintiffs and proposed Class Members are represented by Joe Piucci of Piucci Law LLC, David D. Park, of Elliott & Park, PC, Michelle R Burrows of Michelle R Burrows, PC, Christopher A. Larsen of Pickett Dummigan McCall LLP, David F. Sugerman and Nadia Dahab of Sugerman Law Office, Gabriel Chase of Chase Law PC, Jane L. Moisan of People’s Law Project, and Erious Johnson, Jr. of Harmon Johnson LLC.
The Inmate Tear Gas Exposure Class Action Lawsuit is Davis et al. v. Multnomah County, et al., Case No. 3:20-cv-02041-SB, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, Portland Division.
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