$1.95 million settlement reached in violent death of SC DMH patient

South Carolina’s state mental health agency and other defendants have agreed to pay $1.95 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the estate of a patient who was suffocated to death last year under the combined weight of several staffers who piled on top of him after they placed him face down, preventing him from breathing.

Most of the settlement, which still must be approved by a judge, will be paid by either an insurance company or private companies who employ health care workers contracted to work in the S.C. Department of Mental Health facility where the man, William Avant, died. But DMH will also pay $600,000, according to a preliminary settlement agreement.

The case in the death of William Avant, 35, of Georgetown, who was described by family as a “gentle soul” who suffered from behavioral disorders, attracted widespread attention after The State newspaper exclusively reported how he had died violently at the very hands of the people who were being paid to take care of him.

At the time of his death, in January 2019, Avant was a patient in the G. Werber Bryan Psychiatric Hospital just north of Columbia.

Avant’s death was captured on a security video camera, and that video evidence — along with an affidavit by a mental health expert critical of his treatment — were part of the lawsuit that was filed.

Avant, a patient at Bryan who had a borderline IQ of 65 and was known to become easily upset, had become angry on the evening of Jan. 22, 2019, when staff told him he couldn’t leave the facility to attend his grandmother’s birthday celebration.

“Unable to contain his disappointment, William Avant began acting out by kicking sections of a plexiglass entrance wall, a behavior he regularly exhibited when he was upset,” according to the lawsuit.

At that, according to a security camera video, several staff members grabbed Avant from behind, “jerked him out of the doorway and threw him to the floor by the head and neck,” according to a sworn affidavit by a psychiatrist who reviewed the video.

“Mr. Avant was held down in a prone (face down) position while multiple staff members positioned themselves on top of him,” the psychiatrist, Patricia Boyer, wrote in her affidavit on behalf of the lawsuit. “One male staff member in scrubs appears on the video to have his full weight on his knees on Mr. Avant’s back.”

Boyer, an expert in how patients in psychiatric facilities are supposed to be treated, said, “There is no situation in which a patient should be inappropriately restrained in a prone (lying on his stomach) position. If for whatever reason this is unavoidable, it is the staff’s responsibility to ensure that the patient is able to breathe and informs the team that he is breathing.”

Staffers who knew better did nothing to intervene to stop Avant’s mistreatment, Boyer wrote.

And after Avant had stopped breathing, some 27 DMH staff clustered around the area where resuscitation efforts began, and EMTs “were hindered by the excessive number of SC DMH staff milling about the scene,” she wrote.

At least three of the employees involved in Avant’s death had not been properly trained, according to state health regulators who reviewed the case.

Richland County Coroner Gary Watts ruled the death a homicide. SLED investigated but declined to bring charges. One employee was terminated and several were disciplined, a State newspaper investigation showed.

Avant, who had been a DMH patient since 2007 at Bryan Psychiatric Hospital, had Klinefelter Syndrome, a condition where a male is born with two male chromosomes. Individuals with that syndrome typically have lower than average IQs, may be extremely shy and also have a range of antisocial behavior and personality disorders.

Unable to live a normal life, Avant was first hospitalized for psychiatric care at age nine and spent much of his life institutionalized, according to allegations in the lawsuit.

Despite his condition, he was a vibrant part of his family, which included his mother and father, two brothers and a sister, according to an obituary published after his death.

“Mr. Avant loved art and drawing for his friends and family. He enjoyed classic and hotrod cars as well as going to car shows,” the obituary said.

“He loved hunting and fishing and spending time outdoors whenever possible. William was the life of the party and enjoyed performing card tricks and entertaining everyone, especially his nieces and nephews. He was a huge Garth Brooks fan and loved listening to his music. He was a gentle soul that will be missed by many.”

Here’s how the $1.95 million settlement payment is to be divided up:

▪ Liberty Healthcare Corp., which provides contract healthcare workers to DMH, will pay $550,000.

▪ Quality Placement Authority, which provides contract staffers to DMH, will pay $400,000.

▪ Medical Protective Company, an insurance company, will pay $400,000.

▪ DMH will pay $600,000.

In addition, as part of the settlement, DMH has agreed to waive a lien of $2.1 million it had filed against Avant’s estate for alleged unpaid medical bills.

The companies and DMH continue to deny allegations raised in the lawsuit, and Travis Avant — William Avant’s brother — has agreed not to file any more claims in connection with the death, according to terms of the settlement.

Last year, DMH denied requests from The State to answer detailed questions about Avant’s death and treatment, citing patient privacy laws.

On Tuesday, DMH said, “Due to state and federal privacy laws, without proper authorization, SCDMH cannot acknowledge whether an individual is receiving or has received services from the Agency.”

At the time of his death, Avant was a plaintiff in a class action lawsuit that accused DMH of unnecessarily institutionalizing patients, including Avant, who were capable of living outside an institution with the proper supporting services. The lawsuit was settled last year.

Bryan Psychiatric Hospital, located just north of Columbia at 220 Faison Dr., has 198 beds and serves 33 of South Carolina’s 46 counties. Patients have a variety of conditions including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, anxiety and personality disorders. Many patients are referred to the facility by criminal courts throughout the state.

Avant’s lawyers, Charles Whetstone and Cheryl Perkins, declined comment.

This story was originally published May 26, 2020 at 5:47 PM.