John and Soynia Smith, the parents of Addison Smith, a former inmate at South Central Correctional Facility in Clifton, have filed a lawsuit against CoreCivic following the suicide of their son.
The lawsuit states in part, “27-year-old Addison Smith committed suicide while incarcerated in the South Central Correctional Center, a private prison in Clifton, Tennessee operated by CoreCivic, Inc. Addison had a history of mental health problems and had threatened suicide multiple times prior to his death. “
The lawsuit goes on to allege, “As a result of Smith’s suicide threats, CoreCivic guards placed Addison in an isolated cell. CoreCivic personnel failed to provide Addison with his psychiatric medication, however, and they filed to supervise him while he was in isolation. Addison hanged himself on August 23, 2019, while guards were not paying attention, and he could not be revived thereafter.”
The lawsuit documents go on to cite CoreCivic’s alleged pattern of understaffed facilities and alleged failure to provide adequate medical care to inmates.