A federal judge has thrown out a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the Harlingen Police Department by the parents of 21-year-old who died in custody.
The family of Daniel Tamez filed a lawsuit against the police department for their son's January 2006 death.
The case had been in federal court until late January when U.S. District Court Judge Andrew S. Hanen ruled against the family.
The court determined that Tamez died from an acute cocaine overdose because he swallowed a baggy filled with the illegal drug.
Hanen ruled that the family failed to prove that police acted "deliberately indifferent to Tamez's condition."
But the federal judge said in his judgement that he is concerned about how the Harlingen Police Department provides medical clearance to detainees before they see a judge.
"While no actionable constitutional violation occured pursuant to the policy in this action, the policy appears to leave detainees requiring medical clearance overnight at the City Jail before seeing a doctor the following morning," Hanen wrote.
The federal judge went on to say that the policy could lead to further legal troubles if not corrected.
"It is not difficult to conceive of situations where officers following such a policy without regard for the consequences may lead to constitutional violations of a detainee's constitutional rights to medical care," Hanen wrote.
Hanen ordered that Tamez's parents be liable for the court costs.
Action 4 News obtained a copy of Hanen's decision on Monday and posted a full copy on VALLEYCENTRAL.COM through the link below.
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