by Jeroslyn JoVonn
April 9, 2026
A former Michigan inmate who was denied a colostomy reversal and compelled to reside with a waste bag has been awarded greater than $307 million.
A former Michigan inmate who spent two years in jail with a bag of waste hooked up to his physique has been awarded greater than $307 million in damages over the jail’s dealing with of his medical care.
On April 2, a federal jury awarded former Michigan inmate Kohchise Jackson $307.6 million after a jail healthcare contractor denied surgical procedure to reverse his colostomy to chop prices, leaving him with a leaking, foul-smelling bag, Click on On Detroit experiences. The decision follows years of allegations that Corizon Well being deliberately refused to approve Jackson’s medically needed colostomy reversal surgical procedure, forcing him to proceed residing with a waste bag throughout his incarceration from 2017 to 2019.
“It was a horrible expertise for me,” Jackson stated. “Disgrace on you. I’m nonetheless a human being on the finish of the day.”
The choice wasn’t primarily based on medical want, however on value, his legal professionals claimed. The transfer pressured him to reside with a colostomy bag in jail, the place he endured abuse from different inmates, experiences he nonetheless finds too painful to debate.
“It was horrible, having to be in these shut quarters with guys sporting a colostomy bag, figuring out that it was supposed to come back off inside two months,” Jackson stated.
In a 2019 lawsuit towards CHS TX, Inc.—previously Corizon Well being—and its successor YesCare, Jackson alleged civil rights violations throughout his incarceration from 2016 to 2019. The swimsuit claims he developed a gap between his colon and bladder, permitting waste to leak into his bladder and inflicting extreme infections, fever, nausea, and excessive ache.
“A billion-dollar firm that makes a revenue by bilking the taxpayers confronted the music,” stated one in all his civil rights attorneys, Jonathan Marko of Marko Regulation. “The proof confirmed the businesses spent many years making a calculated determination primarily based on revenue that the lives of prisoners didn’t matter. No company is above the regulation.”
When requested how he was handled by workers and inmates whereas incarcerated, Jackson stated: “I used to be scrutinized. I used to be handled like an animal.”
The jury awarded $300 million in punitive damages towards CHS TX, Inc.—which acquired Corizon Well being after its 2023 chapter—together with $100,000 in punitive damages towards Dr. Keith Papendick, Corizon’s former director of utilization administration throughout Jackson’s incarceration. An extra $7.5 million in compensatory damages was additionally awarded towards CHS TX.
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