LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Another family is suing the Nevada Department of Corrections over allegations the department didn't do enough to prevent an inmate's death.
On Wednesday, the family of Hawk Urban filed a lawsuit against the NDOC and Jeremy Bean, who is the warden of High Desert State Prison. NDOC records show Urban was serving a sentence of two to six years for a battery charge.
Urban began his sentence in 2022 and would have been eligible for parole this year.
According to the lawsuit, Urban died after his High Desert State Prison cellmate assaulted him on Nov. 7, 2024.
The lawsuit alleges Urban was assaulted for between 20 and 45 minutes before correctional officers responded, despite Urban yelling for help and nearby inmates hitting their emergency call buttons.
According to the lawsuit, Urban was "bleeding profusely, barely able to stand and struggling to breathe" when corrections officers intervened.
"Incredibly, the Defendants did not immediately provide medical attention, but instead, drug Urban out of his cell, cuffed him behind the back and left him in a prone position on the floor as he was spurting blood and struggling to breathe," the lawsuit states in part. According to the lawsuit, Urban died before he received medical attention.
Urban's family also claims the Department of Corrections had previously denied Urban's and his cellmate's requests to be separated.
Lawyers representing the Urban family claim the NDOC violated Urban's Eighth Amendment rights.
"Hawk Urban's death was the predictable result of the egregious failure of officers at High Desert State Prison to properly listen to warnings from inmates and respond to clear dangers," said attorney Adam Breeden, who is representing Urban's family. "Hawk Urban's death was preventable, and his family deserves justice for the conditions he was subjected to and his cries for help that were ignored."
As Channel 13 has reported, a spike in inmate deaths has been documented within High Desert State Prison so far in 2025. Here are the numbers:
- 2025 (to date): 17
- 2024: 9
- 2023: 12
- 2022: 13
- 2021: 16
WATCH | Families asking for answers as Nevada prison deaths rise:
Urban's family claims a lack of preparation for a September 2024 inmate swap between High Desert and Ely state prisons contributed to more dangerous conditions, and that staff were not prepared for the transition.
"The situation was so poor that the President of [the union covering the corrections officers at High Desert State Prison] stated about deaths at the facility that, 'It's not rocket science when we were telling them we're not ready,'" the suit states.
It's something NDOC director James Dzurenda addressed during the state prison commission meeting in June.
"What happened is when we moved the staff, the offenders, and the staffing numbers down to High Desert from Ely, the staff who were at the facility were not aware of what procedures they needed to really do, even though they were trained in it," Dzurenda said. "We revamped all the training for the correctional officers at High Desert, and we're already seeing a reduction in incidents."
We also asked Gov. Joe Lombardo whether or not the swap was done too quickly and if it had contributed to more prison violence.
"One doesn't have anything to do with the other," Lombardo said, telling Channel 13 the swap was done to address a staffing issue at Ely State Prison. "We moved those inmates from Ely into High Desert here in Southern Nevada because we were able to apportion or provide the appropriate amount of staffing for that level of risk."
"Unfortunately, there has been a rash of violent acts within the prison system across the board, not just one particular facility, and it's the job of the administrators and the leadership within that environment to address those," he added.
Lombardo also told us he has confidence in prison leadership to address the ongoing issues.
For its part, NDOC leadership has pointed to illegal drugs and drug debt as contributing factors in violence within its facilities. In a previous statement, director James Dzurenda said the department is working to "curtail the influx of contraband and illegal substances" into its facilities.
In the meantime, several recent lawsuits against the NDOC have led to million-dollar payouts of taxpayer money.
Just this week, the State of Nevada agreed to a $4.6 million settlement with the family of Christian Walker. The family's attorney says it's the largest wrongful death settlement in state history.
WATCH | Nevada reaches 'largest wrongful death settlement in state history' in case of NDOC inmate
Earlier this year, the State of Nevada paid NDOC inmate Charles Morris nearly $1 million to settle three lawsuits after he claimed medical negligence led to him being paralyzed.
I reached out to the NDOC to see if they would like to comment on the latest lawsuit. A department spokesperson said they cannot comment on active litigation.