On April 3, 2024, Attorney J.P. Sawyer filed a lawsuit in Dale County, Alabama, against SpectraCare Health Systems, Inc., and Brookridge Apartments II, LLC, due to the death of one of their mental health residents who died due to hyperthermia – excessive heat due to a dysfunctional air conditioner.
The patient was diagnosed with significant mental health issues which prevented him from safely living independently in the community. He was enrolled in a supportive housing program by SpectraCare and assigned to a residence in Brookridge Apartments in Ozark, Alabama. As part of the supportive housing program, he was to be provided housing, training, assistance, and monitoring by SpectraCare and Brookridge.
In September 2023, the air conditioning was not working in the patient's apartment – only blowing hot air. He reported this to the staff. Nothing was done. He was found unresponsive in his apartment on the morning of September 8, 2023. Emergency first responders noted the temperature inside the apartment was 104 degrees when they arrived. The patient's body temperature was 107 degrees. An autopsy revealed his cause of death as “hyperthermia due to environmental heat exposure.”
Attorney J.P. Sawyer focuses on pursuing claims against those who are responsible for but fail to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. Whether nursing homes, assisted living facilities, group homes, or special programs like the one this patient's family trusted.