Mother of Inmate Who Died of Water Intoxication Sues for $75K and Punitive Damages

» Get Patch’s daily newsletter and real-time news alerts.

The mother of a Michigan prison inmate is suing three prison guards for allegedly allowing her mentally ill son to kill himself by consuming large amounts of water.

Kenneth Dalstra, 41, died of water intoxication due to psychogenic polydipsia, a compulsion by those with mental health problems to consume excessive amounts of liquids, according to a lawsuit filed last week in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

When he died on April 8, 2014, Dalstra was serving up to 75 years at the Richard Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia for criminal sexual conduct, The Grand Rapids Press/MLive.com and Michigan Public Radio are reporting.

Dalstra, who has a history of mental illness, was exhibiting “bizarre” behavior such as “spraying soap in his eyes to wash out demons” and was in “full-blown schizophrenia” in the days leading up to his death, according to the lawsuit filed by his mother, Debra Scherbinski.

She is seeking damages of at least $75,000 for her son’s pain and suffering, the loss to his family, attorney fees and punitive damages. The three corrections officers and unnamed staff are named as defendants.

Also on Patch:

• Jury Awards $21M After Woman Dies of Brain Surgery She Didn’t Need

Corrections officials turned off the water in Dalstra’s cell on Sunday, April 6, after noticing he was drinking excessive amounts of water, but told Scherbinski that he couldn’t be seen by a psychologist until the following day. The psychologist reported Dalstra was “becoming more bizarre and ... placing fecal matter in his eyes.”

Dalstra was put on suicide watch, and a management plan to prevent him from harming himself was put in place. According to the lawsuit, the psychologist later determined Dalstra was at moderate risk to kill himself, and ordered that the inmate be observed every 15 minutes.

The lawsuit alleges that one of the officers who had seen Dalstra drinking excessive amounts of water returned water service to his cell. He drank water continuously from 2-4 a.m., according to the lawsuit, and was pronounced dead of water intoxication at 7:10 a.m. on April 8.

Corrections staff “were well aware that (Dalstra) faced a substantial risk of serious harm” and “acted with deliberate indifference” to his health and safety, according to the lawsuit.

The Michigan Department of Corrections told both Michigan Radio and MLive.com that it not yet been served with the lawsuit, but Dalstra’s death is being investigated.