Michigan Man Wins $307 Million Over Horrific Prison Medical Neglect

A federal jury has handed down a massive $307.6 million verdict in favor of Kohchise Jackson, a former Michigan inmate who was forced to live with a leaking colostomy bag for years because a private healthcare company wanted to protect its profits.

The ruling comes after years of Jackson fighting for accountability regarding the inhumane treatment he suffered while incarcerated from 2017 to 2019.

Jackson’s ordeal began when Corizon Health, the prison’s medical contractor at the time, denied him a standard surgery to reverse his colostomy. Despite the procedure being medically necessary, the company blocked it to avoid the expense. This left Jackson in a desperate situation, forced to manage a foul smelling and leaking waste bag in the middle of a prison population.

“It was a horrible experience for me,” Jackson said after the trial. “Shame on you. I’m still a human being at the end of the day.”

The lack of care led to life-threatening complications. Jackson developed a fistula, which is a hole that formed between his colon and his bladder. This caused waste to leak into his bladder, resulting in severe internal infections, constant nausea, and excruciating pain. Beyond the physical damage, the social toll was devastating. Jackson described being mocked and mistreated by both staff and other inmates because of his condition. “I was scrutinized. I was treated like an animal,” he recalled.

The legal team representing Jackson argued that the company, now known as CHS TX, Inc., operated on a business model that put money over human life. “A billion-dollar company that makes a profit by bilking the taxpayers faced the music,” said attorney Jonathan Marko. “The evidence showed the companies spent decades making a calculated decision based on profit that the lives of prisoners didn’t matter. No corporation is above the law.”

The jury clearly agreed, awarding $300 million in punitive damages specifically to punish the corporation for its behavior. They also awarded $7.5 million for Jackson’s suffering and an additional $100,000 against Dr. Keith Papendick, who oversaw the denial of care.

For Jackson, the trauma of those two years still lingers. He remembers the fear and embarrassment of being trapped in a cell while knowing his surgery was long overdue. “It was horrible, having to be in those close quarters with guys wearing a colostomy bag, knowing that it was supposed to come off within two months,” he shared.