Court rules for counties in Long Soldier lawsuit

Eight years after the death of high school basketball standout Allen “A.J” Long Soldier Jr. in the Hill County jail, the Montana Supreme Court ruled this week that Hill and Blaine county law enforcement did not discriminate against Long Soldier in the events leading to his death.

Long Soldier, who led the Hays-Lodge Pole team to a Class C championship in 2007, died from alcohol withdrawal Nov. 23, 2009, at age 18, four days after he was arrested for violating probation on juvenile charges.

In a lengthy series of filings, findings, rulings and appeals, Long Soldier’s family said the law enforcement of both counties and the staff of Northern Montana Hospital took actions leading to his death by discriminating against him as both a Native American and as an alcoholic.

The state Supreme Court ruled that previous hearings showed that enough evidence supported finding that the counties did not discriminate against Long Soldier.

“Finally, we acknowledge the heartbreaking truth that Allen Long Soldier Jr. — a gifted young man — suffered horrendously while dying slowly from alcohol withdrawal syndrome,” Justice Beth Baker wrote in the conclusion of the court’s opinion. “On this record, however, the Montana Human Rights Act is not a proper legal remedy for his suffering.”

The issue was whether the counties discriminated against Long Soldier by not providing him medical attention or medicine for his withdrawal symptoms.

Northern Montana Hospital settled with the family before the first hearing was held.

Over the seven years after the family filed the discrimination complaint with the Montana Human RIghts Commission, a hearing officer first found that the counties had not discriminated against Long Soldier.

The family appealed that to the full commission, which found the officer had ruled in error and remanded the case back, ruling the counties had discriminated against Long Soldier on his addiction by not giving him medication for his withdrawal symptoms. Neither the hearing officer nor the commission found the counties discriminated against Long Soldier due to race.

The officer then awarded the family $300,000 from the counties for emotional distress. The family and counties appealed, and the commission increased the damages to $1.35 million.

The counties appealed, and District Judge Jeffrey Sherlock concluded the hearing officer had ruled correctly.

The family both filed a motion to amend that order and appealed to the Supreme Court.

While the Supreme Court appeal was pending, District Judge James Reynolds, who took jurisdiction on the case after Sherlock retired, granted the estate’s motion and remanded the case back to the commission, a decision the counties appealed to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court opinion says Long Soldier, who was trying to get into college at the time of his death, had ended up in juvenile probation due to his problems with alcohol and depression. When a probation officer tried to contact him to close his file in the fall of 2009, the officer could not get in touch with Long Soldier and a pick up and hold order was issued.

A Blaine County sheriff’s deputy arrested Long Soldier the morning of Nov. 19, 2009, and he was taken to the Hill County Detention Center, where Blaine County adult prisoners are held under an intercounty agreement.

The opinion says Long Soldier had been drinking heavily for several days prior to his arrest but had not for some time before he was arrested and showed no signs of being drunk.

For the first 24 hours he was in jail, Long Soldier showed no signs of problems aside from not sleeping, the opinion says. Then he started to complain that he could not hold down water and asked to go to the hospital. His condition continued to deteriorate, including reports of hallucination, which detention center staff members recognized as symptoms of “detoxing,” or alcohol withdrawal.

As Long Soldier became more violent, he was taken to Northern Montana Hospital about 7 p.m. Nov. 21, 2009, the opinion says. A doctor administered medication, but did not diagnose him with alcohol withdrawal syndrome.

Long Soldier’s condition improved and the doctor discharged him and prescribed antidepressants and anxiety medication. The hospital discharged Long Soldier but did not provide the anxiety medications, the opinion says.

Long Soldier’s condition worsened once he was back at the jail, the opinion says. About 2:30 a.m. Nov. 22, 2009, detention center staff members informed Blaine County deputies he might need to be taken back to the hospital.

The Blaine County sheriff’s office called the hospital, and a nurse told the dispatcher Long Soldier just needed to drink fluids and that he was “playing with them,” the opinion says. The nurse said Long Soldier was not physically ill and “just doesn’t like being there,” the opinion says.

After several more hours of Long Soldier suffering from hallucinations, talking to himself and not eating or sleeping, he began shivering and became nonresponsive, the opinion says. Detention center staff members called an ambulance, which took Long Soldier back to the hospital. He was pronounced dead there about 2 a.m. Nov. 23, 2009.

The Supreme Court opinion noted that an argument made was that Long Soldier was not given medication prescribed for anxiety and depression. However, it says, the complaint alleges discrimination, and nothing demonstrated the counties failed to provide medication because of discrimination.

“In fact,” the opinion says, “the Commission did not modify the Hearing Officer’s finding that the ‘substantial and credible evidence of record established that none of [the Counties’ personnel] considered [Long Soldier’s symptoms] to be a disabling or even life-threatening condition.”

After the hearing officer made a finding in favor of the counties and the commission remanded the case back and then increased the damages, on appeal, Judge Sherlock ruled that the commission used incorrect standards and several other improper procedures in making its finding, saying the decision was “clearly erroneous in the view of the evidence” and that it was “arbitrary and capricious in its rejection of the hearing officer’s findings of fact.”

The Supreme Court agreed that the record contained enough evidence to support the hearing officer’s findings.

“The evidence demonstrates that the Hospital’s discharge instructions advised that Long Soldier should follow up with a medical provider in three to five days; the Hospital did not instruct the Counties on what to do if his condition worsened,” the opinion says. “Detention center staff appreciated that Long Soldier was experiencing alcohol withdrawal symptoms, but expected — consistent with their experience — that the symptoms would subside. And when they inquired further, they were told that Long Soldier was not ill and just didn’t want to be in jail.”