Inmate died after negligent medical care in Horry County jail, lawsuit claims
.JPG "An inmate at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center died during the opiate detoxification process. A new lawsuit blames the medical care he received. TSN Feb. 1, 2024 File.")
An inmate died at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center in March 2025 after medical providers failed to intervene properly after he exhibited symptoms of “severe opiate withdrawal,” a lawsuit filed Monday claims.
James Carroll, an Horry County resident, was arrested on March 13, 2025, according to the lawsuit. Online jail records show that the 49-year-old was arrested on charges of possession of schedule I and II narcotics and possession, concealment, selling or disposal of a stolen vehicle. At the time of his detainment, he reported that he was under the influence of opiates, the lawsuit states.
The following day, detention center staff gave orders for Carroll to be prescribed detoxification medications and placed on observation. Mediko P.C. the Virginia-based corporation named in the lawsuit, was responsible for the nursing and medical care at the jail during Carroll’s detainment, the lawsuit claims.
Mediko did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
The lawsuit also names an anonymous medical provider as a defendant, stating that the name of the responsible physician could not be ascertained from medical records.
James Carroll found unresponsive in jail
Over the next few days, after being jailed, Carroll exhibited symptoms of “severe opiate withdrawal,” the lawsuit says. He experienced nausea, vomiting, indigestion and diarrhea, but medical providers at the jail failed to intervene quickly, the lawsuit claims.
On March 18, staff found Carroll unresponsive at about 7:15 a.m. He was then taken to Conway Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 11:04 a.m., the lawsuit states. This corresponds with the date and time listed as Carroll’s “release date” in online jail records.
During the time of Carroll’s detoxification process, Mediko failed to provide food or fluid intake documentation, intervene when Carroll stopped eating and drinking for several days, and provide timely care and proper monitoring, the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit further asserts that when Carroll displayed a “deteriorating medical condition” and abnormal vital signs on March 18, caretakers failed to intervene properly or transport him to an outside medical facility. The lawsuit claims that Mediko contributed to Carroll’s death “by means of dehydration and amplified Fentanyl toxicity.”
The legal action was filed as a medical malpractice suit by Carroll’s estate representative, Michael Carroll.
