Last month, Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn (MDC Brooklyn) was the subject of an “interagency investigation” led by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and Office of Inspector General (OIG) following an increase in reports of dangerous and inhumane conditions at the facility. The investigation lasted for less than 5 days and reportedly only resulted in the removal of contraband and weapons from the facility.

There was no substantive investigation into the dangerous conditions facing those who are detained at MDC Brooklyn. The dangers are reportedly exacerbated by the lack of proper oversight, staffing shortages, and a backlog of maintenance requests, according to the Associated Press.

In fact, over the past year, MDC Brooklyn has been in the spotlight for reports of dangerous conditions at the facility, including its worsening infrastructure, an increase in violence, and multiple deaths at the prison. In fact, in September of 2024, nine inmates were charged for their involvement in numerous crimes including murder and assault against other inmates and one guard was charged with a federal civil rights violation for shooting a civilian.

If you or a loved one have suffered a serious injury while incarcerated at MDC Brooklyn, you may be able to file a lawsuit against those responsible for your injury.

At the Jacob Fuchsberg Law Firm, our Civil Rights Team, led by attorney Jaehyun Oh, has extensive experience representing incarcerated victims of medical malpractice, serious physical injury, and sexual assault. We can help you hold the responsible parties accountable.

Filing a Lawsuit against MDC Brooklyn

Located in Brooklyn, NY, MDC Brooklyn houses just over 1,100 inmates. MDC Brooklyn is currently the only federal detention facility within New York City limits, following Metropolitan Correction Center (MCC) Manhattan’s closure due to failing infrastructure in 2021.

Over the past decade, the facility has been the subject of multiple investigations by the OIG for allegations of deteriorating infrastructure, sexual assault, and inadequate security classifications. Most notably, in February of 2019, MDC Brooklyn received national attention for a power outage that left those incarcerated in the facility without electricity or heat for multiple days.

No one should ever be put at risk of a serious injury while incarcerated, especially if it is due to the facility’s negligent or reckless behavior. Facilities with a history of failures need to be held accountable, and pursuing legal action can help you and your family seek justice for your injury.

The following injuries have been reported at MDC Brooklyn:

Wrongful Death

Over the past few months, multiple people have died while detained at MDC Brooklyn which may be an indication of systematic failures that are consistently putting incarcerated individuals at risk.

The most common causes of death in prison are medical neglect, inadequate mental health care, and inadequate drug or alcohol withdrawal treatment. Alarmingly, the Department of Justice found that a number of inmate deaths in federal prisons were preventable in a study released earlier this year.

No one should ever be put at risk of death due to a preventable issue, including a facility’s failure to timely attend to medical and mental health needs. If a loved one has passed away while incarcerated at MDC Brooklyn, contact a lawyer immediately to discuss your rights.

NPR: Jaehyun Oh of the Jacob Fuchsberg Law Firm files lawsuit on behalf of a mother of seven who died from improper management of opiate withdrawal, only three days after she was detained. Even though she exhibited worsening symptoms of withdrawal, staff failed to take appropriate action which led to her death.

Medical Malpractice

In May of 2024, MDC Brooklyn was ordered to appear in court to explain why MDC Brooklyn medical staff failed to give an inmate medicine after surgery and subsequently lied to the inmate’s lawyer about having provided that medicine.

A delay in medical care or failure to timely diagnose or attend to an individual’s symptoms can lead to a life-threatening outcome for those who are incarcerated. Incarcerated individuals are forced to rely on reports and/or complaints made to correctional officers, but these complaints are often overlooked and sometimes even ignored.

The most common forms of medical malpractice in prison include:

• Delayed cancer diagnosis
• Delayed stroke diagnosis
• Delayed drug or alcohol withdrawal treatment
• Delayed treatment of an infection including blood infection, spinal infection, and eye infection

Unfortunately, failure to timely attend to the above medical issues can lead to permanent injuries, limb amputation, paralysis, blindness, and even death. If you or a loved one have suffered a serious injury as a result of delayed medical treatment while incarcerated in MDC Brooklyn, speak with a Brooklyn Civil Rights Attorney today.

Success story: $3M recovered on behalf of a 40-year-old prisoner who was paralyzed as a result of Fulton County Correctional Facility’s failure to treat his spinal cord infection.

Success story: $1.25M recovered on behalf of an inmate who developed prostate cancer due to his correctional facility’s failure to attend to his medical needs.

Success story: $1.2M settlement reached on behalf of a 37-year-old husband and father incarcerated in New York State Department of Corrections facility who committed suicide, despite making numerous pleas for psychiatric help during the month leading up to his death.

Sexual Assault

MDC Brooklyn also has a history of correctional officer sexual abuse of inmates. In 2017, three correctional officers at MDC Brooklyn were indicted for sex crimes against female inmates in their custody. However, there have been additional reports of staff sexual abuse since then.

Sexual contact between a correctional officer and a guard is prohibited by law since guards maintain substantial control over an inmate’s daily life. Correctional officers often take advantage of their seniority, blind spots within the prison, or use retaliation to coerce incarcerated people to engage in sexual activity with them.

Sexual abuse can have devastating, long-term impacts on the victims, and abusers must be held accountable for perpetuating the abuse.

New York Times: Jaehyun Oh was featured in the New York Times for obtaining then-highest settlement against the federal government for inmate sexual assault.

US Senate: As a result of Ms. Oh’s historic settlement, Carolyn Richardson, a plaintiff in the lawsuit, was invited to testify at the U.S. Senate an Investigation of Sexual Abuse of Female Inmates, hosted by the Permanent Subcommittee of Investigations. Following the testimony, the Prison Camera Reform Act was signed into law, and Compassionate Release requirements were amended to include survivors of officer-on-inmate sexual abuse.

Violence

Even though incarcerated individuals are owed basic protection by their facility, MDC Brooklyn has come into the spotlight for reports of serious injury and death. Unfortunately, these reports don’t seem to be one-off cases, raising suspicion about whether or not prison officials knew about the risk in the first place.

The most common scenarios leading to violence against inmates and staff include:

• The assailant has numerous incident reports for violent acts
• Staff were aware of the assailant’s history and/or attitude towards a particular individual but failed to take this into account for housing, work, or recreational assignments
• Staff failed to properly monitor the assailant
• Staff enabled the assailant’s behavior by failing to reprimand them

Although claims involving violence perpetuated by an inmate against another individual are difficult to pursue, it is important to hold the facility accountable for their behavior, especially if it enabled or directly led to an assault. Civil Rights attorney Jaehyun Oh has extensive experience pursuing claims involving violence and can help you and your family navigate this difficult process.

Success Story: $999K obtained on behalf of an inmate detained at Rikers Island who suffered from paralysis due to the prison medical staff’s failure to properly treat him after he was struck on the head by another inmate.

Success Story: $787.5K recovered on behalf of 29-year-old who was attacked by inmates who poured boiling water on him while he was sleeping at Metropolitan Correctional Center New York.

Success Story: $475K settlement obtained on behalf of physician working at Rikers Island who was held hostage by a known-violent inmate who was awaiting trial for murder.

Brooklyn Prison Injury Lawyer

Unfortunately, MDC Brooklyn has a long history of dangerous conditions, medical malpractice, violence among staff and inmates, and sexual abuse. Although these conditions are most often attributed to failing infrastructure and understaffing, the facility must be held accountable for injuries sustained as a result.

According to the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), an individual may seek compensation from the United States Federal Government for an injury sustained as a result of a wrongful act by the United States or one of its employees. In the context of federal prison, the Act enables those who have sustained injuries while incarcerated in federal facilities to bring a lawsuit against both the individual agents who were responsible for their injuries and against the United States Federal Government.

Attorney Jaehyun Oh of the Jacob Fuchsberg Law Firm has experience successfully bringing forward claims against the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the individual facility responsible for an individual’s injury.

If you or a loved one have suffered a serious injury while incarcerated, speak with a Brooklyn Prison Injury attorney today to discuss your rights.

We can help you when the unimaginable happens.

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