Fernando Martinez Jr.

Fernando Martinez Jr. was a 33-year-old resident of Clark County, NV. He reportedly experienced schizophrenia, psychosis, paranoia and depression. He was arrested on December 3, 2022, on charges of making terrorist threats, and was placed in a medical psychiatric unit at the Clark County Detention Center.

While incarcerated, Martinez became paranoid about his food being poisoned and would sometimes self-induce vomiting after eating, which, according to a lawsuit filed by his mother, was known to staff of Wellpath, the private company contracted to deliver healthcare in the jail. According to the lawsuit, Martinez “slowly and painfully starved to death.”

Martinez died on February 14, 2023. An autopsy found the cause of death to be hypertensive cardiovascular disease and also cited renal failure, hypernatremic dehydration and unspecified psychosis. The lawsuit noted, however, that Martinez had lost 64 pounds in 73 days.

Wellpath declined to comment on the specifics of Martinez’s case, but the company’s Director of External Communications and Reputation Management stated that “Wellpath is unwavering in its commitment to delivering quality, compassionate care to thousands of patients across our partner facilities. We are deeply proud of the impactful work our teams provide to vulnerable, underserved patients in the correctional setting and the consistent evaluation of our processes and procedures to enhance our patients' care.”

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, which operates the Clark County Detention Center, did not respond to the Lab’s request for comment.

A full account of the lawsuit—including the estate’s allegations against Wellpath, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and others, as well as each party’s response—is available through PACER (Case 2:23-cv-02161, District of Nevada).

• IN THE NEWS (Warning: Disturbing Contents)
  • Article One
• LITIGATION (Warning: Disturbing Contents)
  • Complaint
  • Answer from Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department