Oshkosh Correctional Institution. Image courtesy: FOX 11
OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The mother of an inmate at Oshkosh Correctional Institution claims her son is dying due to a lack of care from prison staff.
Wisconsin’s prison system has faced a variety of mistreatment accusations in recent years, including the involvement of nine Waupun Correctional employees who were charged with misconduct or abuse two years ago.
In the past few months, Deb Franzen says her son, Daniel, has developed a stutter, body twitches, hearing and vision loss and is no longer able to stand on his own.
“He worked at Oshkosh Correctional Institution doing shoveling snow and maintenance, and now he’s barely moving,” said Franzen.
She’s been collecting his medical records and shared an October document from Ascension NE Wisconsin-Mercy Hospital that describes an evaluation of a 9-by-5 millimeter mass on her son’s brain that likely represents a tumor.
“He’s not my son,” said Franzen. “He’s declining every single time I talk to him.”
Franzen’s 35-year-old son is serving a five-year sentence for using a computer to try to facilitate a sex act with a child. She says prison medical employees are refusing additional testing or proper care for her son.
The Wisconsin Department of Corrections sent a statement on the situation:
While the Department of Corrections (DOC) cannot comment on any individual’s medical treatment, DOC primary care providers do routinely perform cancer screenings. The department follows U.S. Preventative Services Task Force guidelines in terms of who is a candidate for screening, when to screen and how frequently. If a concern is found, a DOC primary care provider will refer a person in our care to an oncologist or other appropriate specialist in the community for further testing and treatment as needed. Our health care staff strives to provide the same level of care to incarcerated individuals as is available in the community.
Two OCI inmates have died in the first two months of this year. Franzen is worried her son could become the third, if nothing is done to help him.
“At the rate they’re going, he’s not coming home alive,” said Charles Gill, who was released from the prison last week. He says he has witnessed Franzen’s health decline.
Gill says he’s been in and out of prisons in four states over the past 32 years and claims the medical care in Oshkosh’s prison is the worst he’s seen.
“This is the only prison I’ve seen more deaths because of medical malpractice, negligence, because they’re not taking proper care of inmates than every other prison,” said Gill.
To try to get attention on her son’s situation, Franzen posted a video online that has been viewed tens of thousands of times. She’s also reached out to local, state and federal officials.
Franzen is due to be released from prison in December 2027. He has filed a federal lawsuit against OCI medical personnel seeking $10 million in damages. No hearings are set in relation to the suit, and no responses have been filed either.
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