FORSYTH COUNTY, N.C. — The son of John Neville has filed a lawsuit against the Forsyth County Sheriff, 5 detention officers, and a nurse after his father's death in 2019.
Sean Neville filed a civil lawsuit Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.
The lawsuit lists Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough Jr., the five detention officers and nurse charged in connection with Neville's death, Wellpath LLC, and Forsyth County as the defendants.
The lawsuit is seeking $25,000 in damages as well as any additional amount determined by the court.
The lawsuit alleges, “the detention officers and nurse who purported to assist Mr. Neville altogether failed to recognize the seriousness of his condition or to follow the policies set in place for handling inmates or detainees with serious health problems or who are experiencing a medical emergency," according to court documents.
Sean spoke with WFMY News 2 Wednesday, saying the family is trying to get a just outcome.
"The most difficult part of having this unresolved is having this up in the air and this out there and I know we'll all rest easier when we can say, 'OK we have a just outcome, we've shown his life was worth more than the way he was treated,'" said Sean.
He said there are still thousands of dollars of outstanding expenses that are owed.
"His final expenses are still out there, I’ve got that bill now since I’m the administrator, that falls to me. For his funeral expenses, for his expenses at the hospital, and even that’s kind of tied our hands because even if I wanted to let it go now I can’t because I don’t have the ability because these are tens of thousands of dollars that as a family, we don’t have lying around," said Sean.
John Neville died while in custody at the Forsyth County Jail in December 2019.
Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough Jr. released a statement about the lawsuit saying,
"My statement is the same as it has been from the beginning. I support the Neville family as they grieve the loss of their dad. I understand this is a civil process, and I cannot discuss details, but I continue to stand on what is legal, what is moral, and what is right. Let it be known, I still love the Neville family.”
WFMY News 2 also reached out to Wellpath. The care provider released the following statement: “Wellpath has a policy of not commenting on pending litigation, and out of respect for both the Neville family and the legal process, we believe that further comment would be inappropriate at this time.”
A statement from the Neville family reads in part,
"My family has suffered a tremendous loss which we never could have anticipated or for which we could have been prepared. Upon learning of the circumstances of my father's tragic death we decided as a family that we did not want his passing to become a public spectacle. We asked the authorities at the jail to respect our wishes for privacy and they respected that."
The family's statement goes on to say,
"In keeping with our previous stance, we had hoped to quietly and privately resolve our differences with Forsyth County, the Sheriff's office, and Wellpath. They have made that impossible and so now we have hired the lawyers at Kilpatrick Townsend to help us seek the fair and just outcome which none of us children nor our father John have yet received."