The family of Holy Barlow-Austin, who died four years ago, will receive $7 million in damages in connection with the death of her relative, media reports say. The money will be paid as part of a settlement between the woman’s relatives and the private company that manages the prison where she was serving her sentence.
Barlow-Austin died in 2019 after leaving the Texarkana correctional facility run by a private company. In 2020, the woman’s relatives sued the company, accusing it of causing the death of their relative. Now, on April 26, a settlement was announced that would see the family of the deceased receive $7 million from her. In a statement released after the verdict, lawyer Erik Heipt, representing the family, said it was one of the highest settlements ever reached in such cases. “If you’re going to cut corners and put profit over people’s lives, you’re going to pay a heavy price,” the lawyer said.
Death of Holy Barlow-Austin
As the “HuffPost” explains, Barlow-Austin, 47, was transferred to Bi-State Correctional Facility in April 2019 after being convicted of a parole violation. At the time, the woman was taking medication related to HIV infection and psychiatric treatment. According to the portal, the content of the lawsuit stated that the prisoner was denied access to medicines. And because she didn’t take them, Barlow-Austin developed an infection that left her blind and unable to walk. Convicted for long periods, she also allegedly starved because she was unable to see the food and drink left for her in her cell, the lawsuit said.
“She spent the last week of her stay in prison under so-called medical observation – isolated and alone, constantly struggling with pain, crawling blindly around her cell, dehydrated and malnourished, living in filth and inhumane conditions, without care,” Heipt emphasized in his Thursday statement quoted by the website.
The video cited in the lawsuit allegedly captured Barlow-Austin’s last two days in prison. The lawyers explained that the video shows the woman trying to move around the cell, using her hands to recognize the space. On June 11, the prisoner was hospitalized, but by then it was too late to save her, the document stated. Six days later, on June 17, Barlow-Austin died. The causes of death were listed as “fungal infection, cryptococcal meningitis, AIDS and hypertension.”
The prison authorities escaped charges
In 2019, local station WFAA reported that the company that runs the prison escaped prosecution over Barlow-Austin’s death because she was released days before she died. HuffPost writes that the prison management company has previously paid compensation to the families of inmates who died while serving their sentence. The portal’s journalists emphasize that they have not received an answer from the company’s bosses to the question of whether the conclusion of the settlement is tantamount to an admission of guilt in this case.
SEE ALSO: She was convicted of killing her four children. She may be acquitted after more than 20 years
Main photo source: Shutterstock