Man Sues County, Sheriff, For Alleged Severed Thumb At San Diego Jail

SAN DIEGO, CA — A man who alleges his thumb was severed after San Diego Central Jail deputies closed a metal door on his hand is suing the county, San Diego Sheriff Kelly Martinez and the deputies involved.

Mauricio Bernal alleges the injury happened while he was an inmate at the downtown jail in July of 2023.

According to the lawsuit filed Wednesday in San Diego federal court, Bernal and other inmates were ordered to line up against a wall to be patted down. Bernal was allegedly told to stand past an area marked by a red line showing where it is safe for inmates to stand.

While waiting to be patted down, an unnamed deputy or deputies shut a metal sliding door on his right hand, "amputating his thumb and permanently injuring his index finger," the complaint alleges.

Sheriff's officials said Thursday afternoon in a statement, "Since this is an active litigation, we cannot comment at this time."

After the incident, Bernal alleges deputies "mocked" him and told him, "It's not so bad." A couple of days after the incident, he was ordered to work by taking out trash "in conscious disregard of the open and exposed wound on plaintiff's severed thumb' and for the remainder of his time in jail, deputies allegedly taunted him by giving him a thumbs up, the complaint states.

— City News Service