Anamosa correctional officer’s widow can go forward with lawsuit against state, prison system

The Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that the wife of an Anamosa correctional officer who was killed in March 2021 during two inmates’ failed escape attempt can move forward with her gross negligence claims against the Iowa Department of Corrections and prison employees.

The court ruled that Sara Montague McFarland, wife of slain officer Robert McFarland, 46, of Ely, is allowed to pursue claims based on gross negligence outside the workers’ compensation system. The court stated Iowa law makes workers’ compensation the employee’s exclusive remedy for any work-related injury against their employer or co-employees, except for gross negligence claims against co-employees, which is the basis for Montague McFarland’s suit.

“We have recognized the existence of the gross negligence exception in cases involving state employees,” Justice Edward Mansfield stated as he cited four cases in which this applied.

The state, in its appeal, had argued that co-employee gross negligence claims aren’t available against state co-employees or against local government co-employees. Under the language of the law, the defendants asserted that the only remedy to injured employees of state and/or local governments is workers’ compensation benefits.

“This is a critical victory not just for the family of Officer McFarland, but for every teacher, police officer, and government employee in Iowa,” Bobby Rehkemper, Montague McFarland’s lawyer, said in a statement Friday. “The Court made it clear: the State cannot use the workers' compensation system as a shield to protect grossly negligent behavior that places our public servants' lives at risk.”

“We look forward to entering the discovery phase of this case,” Rehkemper said. “We are confident that we will uncover and expose a systematic, grossly deficient system throughout the entire Iowa Department of Corrections that places the comfort of convicted prisoners over the safety of public servants.”

The court did, however, limit the number of defendants in Montague McFarland’s lawsuit. The justices said only eight of the original 26 could remain as defendants because Montague McFarland identified only those eight in her claims with the State Appeal Board, which is required before a lawsuit can be filed. The remaining defendants include Beth Skinner, director of the Iowa Department of Corrections.

Also among the eight are William Sperfslage, now retired deputy director of institutions; and Jeremy Larson, the former warden of Anamosa State Penitentiary.

Lawsuit alleges understaffing, lack of safety protocols

The 130-page gross negligence-wrongful death lawsuit, filed in Jones County, stated all the defendants had actual knowledge of the inadequate training, policies and compliance systems of the department and the prison.

The lawsuit described understaffing, known equipment failures, lack of safety protocols and procedures that created “dangerous” situations and allowed violent inmates to access “deadly weapons.”

According to the lawsuit, Anamosa State Penitentiary was over capacity and understaffed as a medium/maximum security prison for men, which it was designated at the time. The designated capacity when McFarland was killed on March 23, 2021, was 911 inmates. It was operating with more than 950 inmates at that time.

The department and prison failed to adequately screen inmates for predetermined qualification standards to participate in the Inmate Maintenance Worker Programs or Iowa Prison Industries, the lawsuit asserts.

The two inmates, Thomas Woodard and Michael Dutcher, were violent offenders yet were allowed to be a prison industries worker and a maintenance worker on the electrical crew, the suit asserted.

Both Woodward and Dutcher, who bludgeoned McFarland and nurse Lorena Schulte, 50, of Cedar Rapids, could access the hammers used as weapons and a metal grinder they attempted to use to cut through metal bars because of the inadequate policies and compliance systems, the suit asserts.

Woodard and Dutcher were each convicted of two counts of first-degree murder; one count each of attempted murder of McKinley Roby, an inmate who tried to help staff; and second-degree kidnapping of Lori Mathes, a dental assistant who was taken hostage that day. Each was sentenced to two life sentences without the possibility of parole.

Trish Mehaffey covers state and federal courts for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com