Sacramento County to pay $3.5 million to family of man who overdosed at the downtown jail
Sacramento County agreed this week to pay $3.5 million to the family of a mentally ill homeless man who died last year in the booking area of the Main Jail downtown, officials said.
David Barefield, 55, died May 12 of fentanyl and methamphetamine intoxication, with cardiovascular disease as a contributing factor, one of three men to die at the understaffed facility in just six weeks, The Bee previously reported. At least 30 people have died in county jail facilities since 2021, including one man who was killed during a fight with a cellmate on Wednesday night.
In the Barefield suit filed in Sacramento federal court in December, his parents and children alleged that Barefield was denied necessary care at a time when jail staff should have recognized that he was overdosing.
The settlement, which was approved by Chief U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley on Tuesday, only ends the portion of the case that involved Sacramento County, the Sheriff’s Office and jail health care providers. The part of the case that involved the Sacramento Police Department, which arrested Barefield, remains active, court documents show.
Sacramento County spokesperson Janna Haynes confirmed the settlement and said that jail officials had made several changes to protocol since Barefield’s death.
County health officials reviewed a video of Barefield’s booking at the jail, and concluded that “the details revealed in the video footage, along with our investigation, highlight concerning errors that occurred during Mr. Barefield’s booking process,” the county’s Adult Correctional Health division said in a statement.
Since Barefield’s death, Haynes said, the jails have implemented new policies and training regimens, including adding a private screening by a nurse during the intake process, hiring two new nurses and implementing a new system for monitoring inmates who are being observed for detoxification.
