Lawsuit Eyed in Inmate Death

LONGVIEW � The mother of a man who died this past week in Gregg County Jail custody has hired the attorney who successfully sued the county in the 2010 death of another inmate. That�s according to KETK and the Longview News-Journal. Jarom Tefteller, hired by Betty Madewell to represent her and and her son�s estate, said Monday his first task would be finding out more about what happened to Bobby Madewell. Officials have said Madewell died early Thursday at Good Shepherd Medical Center, where he was taken after jail staff subdued him with a stun gun.

�We need to get more information before we start accusing anyone,� Tefteller said. �If that leads me to believe they did something wrong, I don�t have a problem going to federal court and taking this case to a jury.� Tefteller was prepared to do that when he represented the family of Amy Lynn Cowling in a wrongful death lawsuit against Gregg County, which ended ended earlier this year with a $1.9 million out-of-court settlement. That lawsuit claimed Cowling died after being denied prescription medicines, including Xanax.

Betty Madewell said this past week that jail staff knew her son had a prescription for Xanax but would not give it to him because the anti-anxiety drug is not on the jail�s list of approved medicines. Bobby Madewell had become �erratic and extremely violent� when jail staff used a stun gun to subdue and restrain him, Sheriff Maxey Cerliano said Thursday in a prepared statement. The case remains under investigation.