Under the scorching Georgia sun, Juan Carlos Ramirez Bibiano lay on a slab of concrete in the Georgia Prison, his body in a dire state when nurses found him surrounded by his own excrement and vomiting, according to a complaint filed by his family.
On July 20, 2023, Ramirez was left in an outdoor cell at Telfair State Prison for five hours without water, shade, or ice, while the temperature soared to 96 degrees. That evening, Ramirez, only 27, succumbed to heart and lung failure caused by heat exposure, according to the lawsuit brought by his family. His mother, Norma Bibiano, and other family members announced the lawsuit against the Georgia Department of Corrections, alleging that negligent actions by the officers led to his death. The complaint mentions that the warden had instructed officers to check on inmates, provide water and ice, and limit their time outside.
The Department of Corrections claimed Ramirez died of natural causes, but Jeff Filipovits, one of the attorneys for Norma Bibiano, refuted this at a news conference in Decatur, near Atlanta.
Georgia’s prison system is under intense scrutiny, with the U.S. Department of Justice launching a civil rights investigation in 2021 due to concerns about violence, understaffing, and sexual abuse. Nationally, the Federal Bureau of Prisons faces similar complaints, including sexual abuse, criminal misconduct by staff, understaffing, inmate escapes, COVID outbreaks, and deteriorating infrastructure.
These issues prompted U.S. Senator John Ossoff of Georgia to introduce bipartisan legislation in 2022 to improve oversight and transparency of the agency. The Senate passed the bill unanimously on July 10.
On the morning of Ramirez’s death, Telfair State Prison Warden Andrew McFarlane had instructed department heads to ensure inmates stayed hydrated, received ice, and were not left outside for prolonged periods. Despite this, a prison staff member placed Ramirez in an outdoor “rec cell” at around 10 a.m. following a meeting with a mental health provider, when the temperature was already 86 degrees.
Around 3 p.m., five nurses responded to an alert from security staff and found Ramirez lying naked on the concrete near his vomit and excrement. The lawsuit states his breathing was labored, his heartbeat irregular, and his body was extremely hot. Nurses tried to cool him with cold water bottles and used an automated external defibrillator, but it did not deliver a shock. A doctor later assisted with cardiopulmonary resuscitation and attempted to clear his airway, obstructed by stomach bile.
Ramirez’s internal body temperature was recorded at 107 degrees Fahrenheit. Emergency Medical Services arrived around 3:35 p.m. and transported him to a local hospital, where he died at 8:25 p.m. from cardiopulmonary arrest due to heat exposure.
“The number of deaths in custody is alarming, and the lawlessness inside prisons is a humanitarian crisis,” Filipovits stated at the news conference. “I do not use those words lightly.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that homicides in Georgia’s prisons are increasing, and the state’s Department of Corrections has ceased immediately reporting inmate death causes since March.
The family’s attorneys said they have limited information about the events leading to Ramirez’s death, including whether his placement in the outdoor cell was routine or punitive and which officers were responsible for his care.
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“A piece of my heart is gone,” Norma Bibiano said in Spanish at the news conference, with Ramirez’s brother beside her. Ramirez also left behind a son and was a father figure to his partner’s son. Bibiano described her son as loving, kind, and intelligent, and she misses hearing him say, “I love you, mama” over the phone.
