Washington State Government Negligence

The award-winning team of wrongful death attorneys at Davis Law Group, P.S. is proud to announce a $4 million settlement on behalf of the surviving family of Devan Hammond, who tragically passed away at Western State Hospital in February 2020. Mr. Hammond was found unresponsive after an overdose and was later pronounced dead.

Details Surrounding Fatal Overdose

Western State Hospital is the largest inpatient psychiatric hospital in Washington state, and one of the largest in the country. Many of the patients at Western State Hospital are under civil or criminal commitment, which requires hospital staff to provide a higher level of specialized care and oversight.

On February 9th, 2020, Devan Hammond was found unresponsive in his room by members of the Western State Hospital staff. It was later determined that Hammond’s roommate had come into possession of opioid narcotics while he was on an approved leave of absence from the facility. Because Western State Hospital staff failed to properly screen the roommate upon his return to the facility, the roommate was able to share the drugs with Hammond, leading to his fatal overdose.

Western State Hospital also had policies in place permitting the attending physician to administer NARCAN to an unresponsive patient. However, hospital staff later testified that the attending physician failed to give the necessary orders to administer NARCAN to Mr. Hammond, and he tragically passed away.

Legal Liability for Wrongful Death

The investigation revealed significant failures on the part of the hospital, including a breach of its own policies and procedures to prevent drugs from entering the facility. Additionally, the hospital failed to provide proper medical attention to Mr. Hammond during the critical moments of his overdose.

This preventable tragedy caused immense pain and loss for the Hammond family. Davis Law Group’s dedicated team of attorneys tirelessly fought against the State of Washington for several years, seeking justice for Devan and his family. While no settlement can undo the harm that has been done or bring Devan back, we are honored to have helped the family find a sense of closure and the ability to begin healing in his memory.