The family of a man beaten to death in the Cook County Jail is filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the sheriff

The family of a man beaten at the Cook County Jail has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the sheriff’s office, alleging that it knowingly placed the man in a cell with four others – including one who had a history of violence against inmates.

Johnny Hendrix III, 29 years old in the hospital wing of the Cook County Jail on the morning of August 8, 2023from the lawsuit when he was attacked by another inmate who is now facing murder charges.

“He shouldn’t have died like this, so brutally,” Hendrix’s mother, Mikki Fischer, said at a news conference Wednesday, holding back tears. “He had no chance to escape or fight. He had no chance to defend himself. (…) I want justice for my son.”

The lawsuit filed earlier this month says Hendrix was held in a cell with four other people, all of whom suffered from mental health problems.

According to Hendrix family lawyers, one of these inmates, Daquan Houston, has committed acts of violence against both inmates and corrections officers since 2014.

“When the sheriff’s staff made the decision to place Houston in this cell with several other inmates … without any restrictions, the sheriff knew, based on the jail records in his possession, that Houston posed an obvious threat to the safety of other inmates.”

The sheriff’s office did not comment on the pending litigation, but said in a statement Wednesday; “The office vehemently denies these allegations and looks forward to fully presenting the facts in court.”

From left: Malikah Hendrix, sister of Johnny Hendrix III, attorney Al Hofeld, Jr., Hendrix’s mother Mikki Fischer and attorney Jordan Powell attend a press conference at the Law Office of Al Hofeld, Jr. LLC in the Loop, where it announced a wrongful death lawsuit against Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart and others.

The sheriff’s office initially reported that there was a fight in Hendrix and Houston’s cell, but the family’s attorneys maintain that “no fight occurred.”

According to the lawsuit, “without cause or provocation,” Houston began beating Hendrix, who never resisted.

By the time sheriff’s personnel entered the cell, Hendrix was lying unconscious in a pool of blood.

“He didn’t deserve to be in this situation, to not be able to escape or call for help, and (now) I will never see my brother again,” his sister, Malikah Hendrix, said Wednesday.

Hendrix had a history of mental illness, a criminal history and almost non-violent theft or disorderly conduct charges.

On August 4, 2023, Lynwood police officers found Hendrix sleeping in his car and arrested him on trespassing charges and outstanding warrants out of Wisconsin.

He was transferred to the Cook County Jail and appeared in court on $250 bail and was expected to be extradited to Wisconsin, according to the family’s attorneys. Two days later there was an attack.

“This is simply reckless and negligent on Cook County’s part, as a misdemeanor could cost lives,” Hendrix’s mother said.

Hendrix was transported from prison to Mount Sinai Hospital, and it was the hospital that alerted his family of his death – according to the family’s lawyer, no one from the prison contacted him.

“We have received no response from the Cook County Jail, any South Side Lynwood Police Department, or any department I called. I didn’t receive any information, which was very frustrating and emotionally depressing,” Hendrix’s mother said. “It was just terrible, all the details of it.”

According to the family’s lawyers, this experience is not unique. Some Injustice Watch investigation It found that eighteen people died at the Cook County Jail in 2023, the deadliest year in decades, and the families of at least six of those victims said the sheriff’s office failed to provide them with basic information.

Lawyers for the Hendrix family said they were forced to file a court request asking the sheriff’s office to turn over the results of an internal investigation and other “basic records.”

Attorneys are still waiting for documentation from Cermak Health Services, which provides medical care for inmates.

The lawsuit currently names Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart and 19 individual sheriff’s deputies. Attorneys expect to be able to add additional defendants once they receive documentation from Cermak Health Services.