Inset: Melissa de la Cruz (Saxet Funeral Home/Facebook). Background: The Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center in Edinburg, Texas (Google Maps).
In Texas, a female inmate was left at a hospital by a county jail after dismissing her complaints of pain for three days. Her family claims that Melissa de la Cruz, 45, eventually died of acute sepsis and organ failure in April 2023. The family is suing for the emotional distress caused by the alleged mistreatment de la Cruz endured.
De la Cruz was not taken to the hospital in an ambulance. Instead, her family states that medical staff at the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center made light of her pain from serious health issues that ultimately led to her death, jokingly attributing it to her consumption of Hot Cheetos, Takis, and pickles.
“Melissa had been found on the floor, apparently cursing and yelling due to the extreme pain level,” the document says.
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The family accuses the Hidalgo County jail of neglecting de la Cruz’s medical needs to cut costs, alleging that they deliberately avoided sending inmates in need of urgent medical attention to the hospital, including de la Cruz.
“Instead of calling an ambulance, which would have medical personnel who could assist, it appears that the sheriff’s department chose to drive Melissa to the hospital in an apparent county vehicle,” her family alleges. “This was a misguided attempt to save money.”
According to the complaint, jail staff did not provide sufficient care for de la Cruz as there was only a medical doctor on hand to see inmates for just “six hours each week.”
“The County was deliberately indifferent regarding policies, practices, and customs developed or used related to issues addressed,” the complaint says.
De la Cruz was locked up at the Hidalgo County Jail for a month after being arrested in March 2023 on a failure to appear warrant for a felony drug possession charge. Starting April 10 of that year, Melissa’s family says she began experiencing “strong chest pains, and her legs were hurting.” She allegedly reached out to her family and told “one or more jailers, and one or more jailers contacted the medical department,” according to the complaint.
“No one would answer at the jail’s medical department,” the family alleges. “Melissa’s daughter indicated that she would call the jail about Melissa’s serious pain. On April 11, 2023, Melissa said during a phone call, ‘I still feel like s—, but my body hurts.’ Her pain from a life-threatening illness continued.”
De la Cruz made numerous phone calls to her daughter and said she was feeling “like s—” and that the jail wasn’t helping.
“I haven’t been able to keep nothing down. I’m throwing everything up,” de la Cruz told her daughter, Ashlee Gonzalez, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of de la Cruz’s three children.
During an April 12, 2023, phone call, Melissa told Gonzalez, “I was f—ing sick all night. I had to f—ing throw myself on the floor so they could f—ing come get me.” She described experiencing “ugly pain … like bad” and said “it f—ing hurts” in areas near the middle of her stomach, and around to her back.
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Gonzalez is suing Hidalgo County for “all damages and remedies available to her as a wrongful death beneficiary and/or heir.” Attempts by Law&Crime to reach Hidalgo County for comment Thursday were unsuccessful.
