CHICAGO (CBS) — The family of a man who died while in prison at Stateville Correctional Center this summer has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Illinois Department of Corrections and private health care provider Wexford Health Services, accusing prison staff of disregarding the asthma attack that killed him.
Michael Broadway, who was 51, died on June 19 after suffering an asthma attack amid excessive heat inside the prison.
His family claimed his death was entirely preventable if prison guards and medical staff had made sure he received immediate care after he started struggling to breathe inside his cell.
“Instead of helping him, Defendants watched Michael slowly perish while gasping for breath,” the family’s lawsuit states.
His brother, Brian Broadway, said he spoke to his brother an hour before he died. Then he got word something happened to his brother and immediately tried to call back.
“We couldn’t get no response or nothing from nobody. So it’s kind of ironic, because that was my hero. That was my big brother. He was very protective of me and my whole family. And he is truly missed,” Brian said.