Wellpath Dodges Liability Again
By Malik Washington, Destination Freedom Media Group
Ladies and gentlemen, before we delve into the context of our main article, we want to report this breaking news:
In a shocking and disheartening judicial ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley GRANTED Wellpath’s Motion for Summary Judgment. There will be no August 19, 2024 trial for the Gonzalez plaintiffs and I can’t tell you or express the words of disappointment some of them have. As a journalist, it is my job to report the facts, so without further delay, I share with the public the final paragraph of the order that was filed on Friday, July 12, 2024 regarding the Gonzalez case:
“In sum, Plaintiffs have failed to proffer evidence sufficient to support a finding in their favor on their individual Monell claim against Wellpath. Despite the many years this case has proceeded, and the considerable leeway the Court has given Plaintiffs, they have failed to identify evidence sufficient to support a finding in any Plaintiff’s favor on the Monell claim. While the evidence Plaintiffs have proffered might have created a dispute of fact as to whether the care they were provided on particular occasions fell below the standard of care, that is not the claim they brought. Since they have failed to offer evidence that 
supports a finding a Wellpath custom or policy or pattern and practice was the moving force behind any Plaintiff’s challenged individual treatment decisions, Wellpath’s motion for summary judgment must be granted.” [Emphasis Added.]
It is hard for me not to pass judgment or offer my opinion as to the litigation efforts (or lack thereof) of Plaintiffs’ counsel. The record is replete with evidence that clearly shows a custom, policy, and pattern of practice of Wellpath not providing adequate care or care that is constitutional for our sisters and brothers that are trapped inside that death camp known as SRJ. We need lawyers in the bay area who are committed and dedicated to confronting this major threat to our community.
Recently, Alameda County partially settled a civil lawsuit filed by 12 detainees who are currently housed or who have been previously incarcerated at SRJ. The case is Daniel Gonzalez, et al. vs. County of Alameda, et al., Case No. 3:19-cv-07423-JSC. There were three key components of contention within the civil rights lawsuit, two of which were recently settled. The issue of sanitation inside SRJ was settled as was the case against Aramark, the food service provider at SRJ; the third component against Wellpath was denied to move forward to trial through the granting of Defendant’s summary judgment basically for lack of evidence.
Regarding the issue of sanitation inside SRJ, U.S. District Court Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley certified a class action in the Gonzalez case against the County of Alameda. The Plaintiffs did not receive any monetary compensatory damages but they were provided some miniscule injunctive relief. The County of Alameda agreed to amend its policies and procedures regarding sanitation for prisoners housed at SRJ. Here is a list of the changes:
- Detainees now have the right to ask for a toilet brush to be sanitized between each use;
- The jail has a “new” policy specifying that no inmate shall be housed in a cell with fecal matter, urine, blood, and other biological contaminants;
- An outside contractor will be responsible for cleaning biohazards;
- Each housing unit shall get a clean mop bucket;
- Cleaning supplies shall not be limited to pod time;
- There will be a specific policy on replacement of food trays that are filthy; and
- These concessions by the County will be accompanied by one year of monitoring.
I was mortified when I learned about these pathetic settlement conditions regarding sanitation. In a civilized society, every one of these “so-called” policy changes in procedure should be part of accepted practices and policies at any jail or prison in America.
I submitted detailed declarations to Judge Corley about the “shit pod” incident. Although Kara Janssen of the San Francisco-based law firm, Rosen, Bien, Galvan & Grunfeld wrote an advocacy letter (March 7, 2023 letter above) on my behalf, we still have not received any information about the discipline meted out to ACSO Deputy Clinton, Badge #2608. Deputy Clinton was responsible for the initial threat related to my placement in the cell covered in fecal matter and urine.
I was able to cultivate a confidential source inside ACSO. My confidential source provided me with details of the Aramark Food Service settlement in the Gonzalez case. Aramark has agreed to pay the 12 plaintiffs in the Gonzalez case $100,000 (though they will only split $60,000). In addition to the $100,000 paid by Aramark, Alameda County agreed to increase funding for meals. Previously, each meal inside SRJ was limited to an approximate cost of $1.70; the County has now agreed to increase the funding for each meal to $3.70.
Aramark is known for providing inadequate meals and subpar nutrition to incarcerated individuals all across the United States. Here are some articles including two of ours that our independent nonprofit news organization (formerly known as the Santa Rita Jail Freedom Collective) published in 2022 about subpar, inadequate, and at times, unsanitary food that was provided to detainees inside Santa Rita Jail
I am uniquely qualified to report on this particular topic. I authored two civil lawsuits against Aramark regarding the pitiful religious meals given to Muslims, Jews, and others who require a sanctified religious diet. The religious trays that I was served at SRJ were routinely deficient and inadequate. The tray containers themselves were filthy on a regular basis and were not cleaned properly. I became so dissatisfied and frustrated that I eventually refused the religious diet altogether. This was in contradiction to my religious beliefs. Words cannot explain the hurt I felt as I was subjected to blatant acts of retaliation and discrimination in a Northern California county where the district attorney is a highly intelligent and accomplished Black woman (Pamela Price).
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors (AC BOS) continues to obstruct and sabotage all efforts to implement or establish meaningful oversight of the ACSO. Too many of our community members have died inside SRJ and have been provided lackluster medical care. Too many of our loved ones have been refused basic adequate medical care inside this death camp.
SKIN IN THE GAME
Using cruel and unusual conditions of confinement in order to punish and silence the voices of incarcerated people is not a new tactic.
In 2013, the first article I ever wrote for the San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper was about this gross tactic of psychological torture and warfare utilized by police agencies against outspoken inmates. Here’s the link to the article entitled,
SERVING THE PEOPLE DESPITE THE RETALIATION OF THE OPPRESSORS
https://1drv.ms/b/s!AkURCjxVvy29mZIvBWqE8fIaO_lrvg?e=EURQ0W
It’s relevant to mention that this specific incident took place in a Texas prison. However, once we begin to analyze the behaviors of law enforcement (deputies) inside Santa Rita Jail, we soon discovered that there is no difference from the oppressor inside a Texas prison from the oppressor inside a county jail located in Dublin, California. They both follow the same fascist playbook. What bothers me the most about the Gonzalez settlement is that it is the mentally ill detainees who are catching the most hell inside SRJ’s restricted housing unit.
Last year, civil rights attorney Yolanda Huang sent a college intern from UC Berkeley Law School to interview me about the conditions inside Housing Unit 1 (RHU). Housing Unit 1 has a notorious reputation for filthy, unsanitary conditions and foul treatment of the most vulnerable inmates who mostly are suffering from some type of mental illness. I spent two hours in a recorded interview session with this Muslim law school intern. I am withholding the intern’s name because her intention most assuredly was to help and not ignore the vulnerable mentally ill detainees housed at SRJ.
In the religion of Islam, a person’s “nyat” is known as one’s intention. To violate one’s intention or “nyat” is to violate one’s duty in whatever act one has committed to perform. I could tell that this UC Berkeley intern was committed and dedicated to serving the people inside SRJ and not pursuing monetary enrichment. There is nothing in this Gonzalez settlement that addresses the needs of the vulnerable mentally ill population who are forced to live in squalid conditions. Our struggle and fight against ACSO, Aramark, and Wellpath continues.
Counsel in the Gonzalez case has called the settlement in the Babu case (another SRJ lawsuit) a “sham and sweetheart deal.” We at Destination Freedom Media Group agree with this statement 100%. But if the Babu Consent Decree settlement is a “sham and sweetheart deal” then this recent Gonzalez settlement is a date at the annual Sadie Hawkins Dance. We want justice, accountably, and transparency against these wrongdoers. Wellpath has hurt this community for far too long and has greatly profited from the hurt they caused.
In December 2023, the Davis Vanguard published this article/letter authored by Gale Sanders, President of Destination Freedom:
OPEN LETTER TO ROB BONTA RE: IN CUSTODY DEATHS AT COUNTY JAILS IN SAN DIEGO AND ALAMEDA
Open Letter to Rob Bonta Re_ In-Custody…pdf
As I end this article, please allow me to revisit a quote from that open letter to California Attorney General Rob Bonta:
“The coroner’s report stated that Mr. Monk died from “hypertensive cardiovascular disease.” At the time of Mr. Monk’s death, Sheriff Ahern was the sheriff/coroner. Had the sheriff’s deputies intervened prior to November 15, 2021 (as shown in the video – watching and attempting to speak with an unresponsive individual through the cell door glass for at a minimum of two days without opening his cell door to see if he needed medical attention), Mr. Monk would probably be alive. Where was Wellpath through all of this….oh, that’s right, tossing his meds on the floor of his cell through the food slot while he lay face down, motionless on his bunk.”
Malik Washington is a freelance journalist and Director at Destination: Freedom and Destination Freedom Media Group.
