LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Two new lawsuits have been filed on behalf of inmates who were hurt or died from injuries they got inside Nevada Department of Corrections prison facilities.
Monday morning, on the steps of the Regional Justice Center in downtown Las Vegas, lawyers from the LJU Law Firm gathered with family members who lost loved ones in state prisons.
“This case is about Nevada State Employees violating the civil rights of those in their care resulting in the unnecessary death of a young man," the lawsuit reads in part.
Senior reporter Mary Kielar outlines the allegations in the lawsuits:
One family came to speak on behalf of Malik Avila, who died in November 2025 while he was an incarcerated at High Desert State Prison.
His grandmother and aunt, Lucy and Charlene Avila, said it’s been an emotional eight months since his death. They say he was always smiling.
“I love him so much. He was the love of my life,” his grandmother said about Malik, her only grandson.
Charlene Avila said she went to see Malik at High Desert about two weeks before he died. She says that, at 24 years old, Malik had no known medical issues.
“They all made mistakes to end up there, but you can’t treat them like animals," Charlene said.
LJU also filed a lawsuit related to the 2024 Ely State Prison brawl that left three inmates dead and nine others injured.
James Urrutia of LJU Law Firm explained what he says unfolded two years ago.
“[A] big cafeteria, and a group of guys come out, and they just start stabbing another group of guys, unprovoked,” he said. “In about 13 minutes, the guards don’t do anything.”
The two lawsuits pointing to continued scrutiny of the state prison system in Nevada.
“There’s unchecked power, and people are abusing these incarcerated persons," said LJU lawyer Alyssa Piraino. "I don’t know if they don’t think that people are going to care, but people care, and we’re coming for justice for them.”
Channel 13 reached out to NDOC for comment on these lawsuits, and a spokesperson said they do not comment on pending litigation.
