JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The family of a man serving a 15-year sentence for stealing a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office cruiser and other charges in 2016 is fighting for a conditional medical release after they said he suffered injuries due to ‘diminished care’ at the prison.
Michael Planes was a state prison inmate in Lake Butler, but he was transferred to Memorial Hospital HCA because he needed to be treated for injuries the family said were caused by the “diminished care in the Florida Department of Corrections.”
His family said he is in a vegetative state and developed malnutrition and bed sores, including infections in his legs.
The family said they faced two options for Planes: amputate his legs or move him to palliative care. The family did not want to choose either of those options, so they filed a complaint with the Office of Inspector General to investigate the prison and/or the Regional Medical Center. The family also wanted outside medical care through Ascension Health to treat his dying legs.
Planes was arrested after he confessed to stealing a JSO car and police equipment. The arrest report said Planes called the police, saying he saw the car being stolen outside an apartment.
After the investigation, he was convicted for theft of a firearm, car theft, aggravated child abuse, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Watch the family’s news conference below:
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