Dead prisoner’s heart still missing as his family seeks answers

Michael Walter | January 08, 2024 | Cardiovascular Business | Legal News

The heart of 43-year-old prisoner Brandon Clay Dotson is still missing nearly eight weeks after he was found dead at Ventress Correctional Facility in Clayton, Alabama. Nobody, it seems, knows exactly what happened to Dotson’s heart.

When Dotson died in November 2023, his family suspected foul play. Days later, when an independent autopsy revealed Dotson’s heart was missing from his body, Dotson’s family filed a lawsuit against the Alabama Department of Corrections, Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences and UAB Medical Center.

According to an update on the story from AL.com, U.S. District Judge Madeline Hughes Haikala held a three-hour hearing in Birmingham, Alabama, on Friday, Jan. 5. Five witnesses were questioned about the incident, but there are still no answers about the whereabouts of Dotson’s heart.

“The heart of a deceased person simply does not go missing in the absence of deliberate illegal activity or gross negligence on behalf of the entity or entities that had possession of the body prior to it being turned over to the family for burial,” according to the family’s lawsuit, as quoted by AL.com.

The director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences did confirm that organs are typically examined and sectioned during autopsies, but there is no reason the entire heart would be missing.

Also, the prison system’s lawyers have said Dotson’s heart was still inside his body when it left the facility.

Click the link below for the full update from AL.com:

Alabama still can’t find heart missing from prisoner’s body

Fraud charges against cardiologist dismissed after 8-year legal battle

Philips-owned BioTelemetry to pay nearly $15M for allegedly misleading clinicians to secure higher reimbursements

Cardiologist charged with fraud for allegedly altering patient records, billing for unnecessary procedures

Medical malpractice ruling: Hospital to pay $39M over young heart patient’s death

Kentucky health system, cardiologist to pay $3M for alleged scheme targeting Medicare and Medicaid

Cardiologists at heart of alleged kickback scheme—imaging provider, CEO to pay $85M to settle

Michael Walter, Managing Editor

Michael has more than 19 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.

Around the web

Health Exec

Major association of physicians presents itself as a go-to alternative vs. the government on vaccine expertise

One of the most formidable societies of medical professionals in the U.S. is going toe-to-toe with Robert F. Kennedy’s HHS over changing vaccination recommendations.

Health Exec

Tom Price: Medical residency slots need to expand to combat physician shortages

Tom Price, MD, former secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), said one way to address the growing shortage of physicians is to expand medical resident positions, but these are tied to Medicare spending so alternative means may be needed.

Health Imaging

Tariffs will have a significant impact on the nuclear imaging supply chain in the US

"Domestic radiopharmaceutical suppliers, who receive isotopes from abroad, would be impacted by price changes and uncertainty caused by additional tariffs,” SNMMI President Cathy Cutler, PhD, wrote in a letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce this week.