High Court Orders GOB to Pay $300,000 for Inmate’s Death Due to Neglect

The Government of Belize has been ordered to pay approximately $300,000 to the family of Jahangir Rahman Mahdi Abadi, a 70-year-old inmate who died in custody in 2019, after the High Court found Belize Central Prison responsible for his death.

Abadi, who was serving a six-year sentence for abetment to murder, suffered from serious illnesses, including uncontrolled diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and hypertension. His family claimed the prison authorities failed to provide adequate medical treatment or refer him regularly to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH).

The court’s ruling focused on a central question: what was more likely to have caused Abadi’s death, the prison’s failure to treat his critical health conditions between November 2018 and August 2019, or claims that Abadi was unkempt, had a low appetite, and ate sweets despite being diabetic?

The judge said, “Drawing on all the evidence, I prefer Dr Bello’s report that the non-treatment of all of Mr Abadi’s underlying health conditions was likely to lead to fatal complications and that unfortunately this is what happened with Mr Abadi.”

The court rejected the defence’s argument that Abadi’s own behaviour contributed to his death:

“The defendants have not demonstrated that Mr Abadi caused or contributed to his own death by not looking after himself, by declining to eat, by keeping himself unkempt or by eating sweets.”

“The contention that Mr Abadi died because he declined to eat the food given to him in prison is not credible… The allegation that Mr Abadi tried to kill himself through starvation has not been established and, on the facts, is plainly unsustainable.”
“Eating sweets in such a context cannot be any credible evidence that Mr Abadi caused or contributed to his own death.”

The court found that the prison authorities breached their duty of care by failing to provide necessary medication, failing to ensure daily visits by the prison doctor as required by prison rules, and ignoring warnings from private doctors about Abadi’s deteriorating condition.

Importantly, the judge clarified the prison’s legal obligations:

“Prison authorities have a positive obligation to treat and provide medication to prisoners, and where they do not have the capacity, resources and/or expertise, they have an obligation to ensure that prisoners have access to treatment and medication provided by the public hospital system.”

The ruling found the defendants vicariously liable for Abadi’s death and confirmed the claimants, his wife and children, were entitled to damages under the Torts Act for wrongful death.