Pierce County to pay $1M to ex-jail inmate who alleged negligence caused him to lose leg
On Feb. 18, the Pierce County Council unanimously approved a $1 million settlement offer to a former Pierce County inmate who alleged the jail and its medical provider missed signs of a severe blood clot in 2018 that resulted in the amputation of his leg.
Javier Tapia sued Pierce County and Alabama-based medical provider NaphCare Inc. in 2021. The settlement was only between Tapia and the county. Tapia’s case against NaphCare is continuing toward trial in U.S. District Court.
In a statement on behalf of Tapia, his lawyers said Tapia is “glad to put this portion of the case behind him” and “hopes his case and this settlement causes Pierce County to end its contract with its corporate medical provider, NaphCare, Inc., who it negligently contracted.”
“Javier was dehumanized and subjected to the most inhumane treatment imaginable as he sat for nearly two weeks in a solitary confinement cell while his foot and leg literally rotted off,” said representative Ryan Dreveskracht in an email. “No amount of money will bring back Javier’s leg or take back the unbearable pain, suffering and loss of quality of life that he continues to endure. Javier’s only goal is to make this a wakeup call. NaphCare — an Alabama-corporation that advertises itself as a ‘billion dollar’ company — provides healthcare to some of our state’s most vulnerable people. If counties in our state are contracting out their obligations to provide care to people, they must do so in accordance with our standard of community care and the United States Constitution. Putting profit over care, at patient expense, should no longer be a viable option.”
Pierce County told The News Tribune in a statement Feb. 20, “The County takes seriously our responsibility to those in our care, including individuals in the Jail. However, we don’t comment on specific cases.”
On behalf of NaphCare, attorney David Perez said Feb. 20, “We are confident in the level of care that NaphCare’s nurses provided to Mr. Tapia and look forward to proving that the nurses not only acted appropriately and professionally, but also that their actions helped save Mr. Tapia’s life.”
Tapia was released from prison in 2022 following drug and stolen vehicle convictions, as previously reported by The News Tribune. According to court records, jail staff began documenting the deterioration of Tapia’s health in September 2018, three months after he was arrested on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle.
Over the course of a month, Tapia was reported to have difficulty responding to staff questions, began to refuse meals and appeared confused and nonverbal. On Oct. 1, a corrections officer observed Tapia’s “toes were turning black,” and, “For the first time since he began to display concerning behavior, [Tapia] was transported to the jail clinic and seen for the first time by a medical doctor,” according to a complaint Tapia filed in King County Superior Court in 2021.
Once admitted to Tacoma General Hospital that day, Tapia was diagnosed with phlegmasia cerulea dolens and a gangrenous left foot. His leg was amputated below the knee on Oct. 16, 2018, according to the complaint.
Tapia alleged Pierce County “owed [him] a duty to exercise ordinary care to protect and care for him while he was in custody” and “breached this duty by failing to provide appropriate medical care, failing to proper training, policies and procedures on the assessment of persons with apparent medical needs and failing to properly assess and treat [him]” resulting in his injuries. He alleged negligence and medical malpractice from NaphCare as well.
According to court records dated Jan. 27, U.S. District Court Judge Kymberly Evanson said a jury could “reasonably conclude” from the evidence presented “that Pierce County negligently trained [mental health provider]s on the stabilization plan process and that as a result … failed to properly ensure follow-up and continuity of care to Tapia’s medical needs.”
The court upheld Tapia’s claim against NaphCare that his constitutional rights were deprived based on the company’s “policy of withholding proper medical care,” Evanson wrote in an order denying NaphCare’s motion for summary judgment on Jan. 14.
Evanson concluded that NaphCare had a custom of relying on correctional officers for medical monitoring and allowed licensed practical nurses to conduct regular assessments of inmates outside of their nursing scope, according to court records. She said Tapia was able to show that any trained registered nurse or LPN “should have recognized” Tapia’s need for medical attention earlier, and said Tapia met the burden of proof that the company’s LPN policy caused his “acute mental status changes” and the progression of his phlegmasia cerulea dolens and subsequent loss of limb.
A corporate medical director that used to work for NaphCare in Alabama testified in the case that NaphCare may have “prioritized profits over healthcare” because LPNs are generally paid less, and NaphCare was financially incentivized to staff LPNs instead of RNs as a cost-cutting measure, according to court records. In response, NaphCare said it provided more RN hours than contractually required during Tapia’s detention.
As previously reported by The News Tribune, NaphCare has faced multiple lawsuits in the past, including an undisclosed settlement outside of court with the family of a Bonney Lake man who died in the Pierce County Jail from an infection in 2015. A 2022 wrongful death case in Spokane County resulted in nearly $27 million in damages, according to The Spokesman-Review. Tapia’s lawsuit alleges the company has been named in as many as 250 cases in Alabama, Nevada, Virginia, Texas and Washington.
Pierce County first awarded NaphCare a four-month, multimillion-dollar contract for jail medical services in 2015 after its previous provider, ConMed, was also accused of substandard medical care. A jury sided with the county when ConMed sued for nonpayment.
This story was originally published February 20, 2025 at 1:35 PM.
