x
Breaking News
More () »

Epileptic inmate pleads guilty out of fear he would ‘die in jail’

A former inmate at the Vista Detention Facility says he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor because he was afraid he was going to die in jail.

CARLSBAD, Calif.  (NEWS 8) -- A former inmate at the Vista Detention Facility says he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor because he was afraid he was going to die in jail.

CBS News 8 investigated the man's claim: that he suffered multiple seizures in jail over a period of weeks because he wasn't given the proper epilepsy medication.

George Londono filed multiple grievances last year with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, over the court of three months while he was housed at the Vista jail.

The 54-year-old said he was suffering about three epileptic seizures per week while behind bars because he wasn't getting the right medication.

“I have epilepsy.  I've had it for 40 years.  I had close to 20 seizures in jail.  I didn't get my medication.  They said they didn't have it.  It was on order,” said Londono during an interview from his Carlsbad home.

Londono was in jail on a DUI charge, a potential felony because he had prior drunk driving convictions.

But in this most recent case no alcohol was involved.

Londono said he had an epileptic seizure in July 2017 while behind the wheel in Carlsbad and rear-ended another car.

“When my blood results came back I had no alcohol in my system, no drugs in my system, nothing, zero; except for my epilepsy medication,” he said.

The former inmate said he was given medication that did not work for the first seven weeks in Vista jail.

Once the correct medication did arrive, Londono said the frequency of his seizures declined, but the jail staff continued to administer the medication haphazardly.

“Sometimes they wouldn't show up until one in the afternoon with meds, sometimes they wouldn't show up until midnight with my medication,” he said.

“When you have epilepsy you have to take it at the same time every morning and every night,” Londono explained.

On one point, Londono was hospitalized for eight days following a seizure in jail.

Eventually, he decided his only way out was to take accept a plea deal.

 “I literally was having seizures to the point that I said to myself, if I don't plead guilty at this point I'm going to die in here.  I will die in jail,” Londono said.

He signed papers in September 2017 pleading guilty to a misdemeanor: driving a vehicle under the influence of epilepsy medication.

The sheriff's department issued the following statement to News 8:

The Sheriff's Department is committed to providing inmates with clinically indicated medications based on their medical or mental health condition. In 2017, the Sheriff's Medical Services Division processed over 327,000 annual prescriptions and will spend over $6.7 Million on inmate medications for this fiscal year. We provide many types of medications for medical and mental health conditions every day for 5,800+ inmates a day. Between June 2017-September 2017, we switched our pharmacy vendor and electronic ordering system to Diamond Pharmacy which allowed us to utilize patient specific medication cards for improved patient safety. This was a significant shift in our processes and required significant education and training to all of our staff. With any major change, we incorporate feedback to continuously improve our processes.

Londono has his own message for the sheriff's medical staff.

“Take it seriously.  If somebody has a serious medical condition, you need to take it seriously.  It's extremely important,” he said.

Londono pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor and was released from jail the same day.  He was placed on probation and ordered to complete a DUI offender program.

Before You Leave, Check This Out