On April 2, 2026, a federal jury in Detroit took just over two hours to deliver one of the largest verdicts in the history of American prison healthcare litigation. The number: $307.6 million. The defendant: the corporate successor to Corizon Health, once the largest private prison healthcare contractor in the United States. The plaintiff: Kohchise Jackson, a 44-year-old Detroit man who spent more than two years in Michigan prisons with a leaky, stinking colostomy bag attached to his body because Corizon decided the surgery to reverse it wasn’t worth the money.
The verdict in Jackson v. Corizon Health Inc. (Case No. 2:19-cv-13382, Eastern District of Michigan) is not an outlier. It is the logical consequence of an industry built on a perverse incentive: the less care you provide, the more profit you keep. And it should terrify every private prison healthcare company operating in America today — including those operating in Georgia.
The Case: A Colostomy Bag and a Cost-Cutting Decision
Jackson developed a hole in his colon in 2016 while awaiting trial at the St. Clair County Jail in Port Huron, Michigan. Doctors treated him with a colostomy — diverting waste through an opening in his side into a plastic bag. The procedure was supposed to be temporary. A reversal surgery was planned for February 2017. 1
But Jackson entered the Michigan prison system, and Corizon Health was the contractor responsible for his medical care. The reversal surgery never happened. For more than two years, Jackson lived with the bag. It leaked. It smelled. He had to clean it out and reuse it when replacements were unavailable. Other prisoners avoided him. He was involved in altercations. His prison sentence became a daily nightmare of humiliation and physical danger.
“Nobody wanted to be my bunkie, for sure,” Jackson told the Detroit Free Press in a 2019 interview. “I didn’t get along well with others, because of the bag and the smell.”
After his parole in May 2019, Jackson had the reversal surgery on the outside without complications — proving that the procedure was medically straightforward all along.
The Verdict: Two Hours, $307.6 Million
The trial began March 24, 2026, in the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Gershwin A. Drain. On April 2, the jury returned with a verdict that speaks volumes about how it viewed Corizon’s conduct:
- $300 million in punitive damages against CHS TX, Inc. — the corporate entity that purchased Corizon Health out of bankruptcy in 2023
- $7.5 million in compensatory damages against CHS TX
- $100,000 in punitive damages against Dr. Keith Papendick, Corizon’s former “director of utilization management”
The punitive-to-compensatory ratio — 40 to 1 — sends a clear signal. This jury did not see a medical judgment call. It saw a system designed to deny care for profit.
The Fifth Amendment Moment That Changed Everything
One of the most extraordinary moments in the trial came when Isaac Lefkowitz, a New York-based senior official with Corizon, was called to testify. He refused to answer questions, invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. 2
In a criminal case, jurors cannot draw conclusions from a witness’s refusal to testify. In a civil case, they absolutely can — and clearly did.
Jackson’s attorney Jonathan Marko did not mince words in his closing argument. He called Corizon a criminal enterprise and told jurors that Lefkowitz was afraid of being prosecuted in the same courthouse where they sat.
The defense called the trial “a circus” and “a spectacle,” arguing that Lefkowitz had no involvement in Jackson’s care and that the plaintiff’s case relied on “self-serving prison gossip.” The jury was unpersuaded.
The Texas Two-Step: How Corizon Tried to Escape Accountability
The Jackson verdict is remarkable not only for its size but for who is paying it. CHS TX, Inc. is the entity that emerged from Corizon Health’s 2023 bankruptcy — a bankruptcy engineered through one of the most controversial maneuvers in corporate law.
In 2022, Corizon changed its incorporation from Delaware to Texas and executed a “divisional merger” — a strategy known as the “Texas Two-Step.” Under Texas law, the company split into two entities. One, Tehum Care Services, inherited nearly $1.2 billion in liabilities, including hundreds of lawsuits from prisoners and former prisoners alleging medical neglect. The other, CHS TX, kept all of Corizon’s employees, active contracts, and assets worth more than $170 million. CHS TX was then acquired by YesCare, a company controlled by the same executives. 3
Tehum filed for bankruptcy. A proposed settlement would have resolved 200 prisoner claims for a total of just $8.5 million — as little as $5,000 per person after legal fees. 4
Then it got worse. The bankruptcy judge overseeing the case, David Jones, resigned after it was revealed he was in a romantic relationship with an attorney representing YesCare — the company that stood to benefit most from the settlement. U.S. Senators including Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden wrote to Corizon’s successor companies, calling the strategy “abusive” and demanding answers. 5
The Jackson verdict pierces through the corporate shell game. Despite the bankruptcy, despite the name changes, despite the divisional merger — the jury held the successor entity accountable for $307.6 million.
The Georgia Connection: Same System, Same Failures
Corizon Health operated in Georgia for years. The company held contracts with the Chatham County Detention Center in Savannah from 1993 until it was forced out in 2016 after a new sheriff campaigned on improving prisoner healthcare. At the Chatham County facility, a Reuters investigation found that prescription drugs went missing, gravely ill patients were denied hospitalization, mentally ill inmates went untreated, and medical records were falsified. 6
Corizon also held contracts with Gwinnett County facilities from 1997 onward. In Georgia’s Chatham County jail, fired nurses reported being terminated for questioning dangerous practices, and a psychiatrist reportedly signed off on prescriptions without seeing patients — an illegal practice under Georgia law. 7
But the problem in Georgia extends far beyond Corizon. The for-profit prison healthcare model operates on the same perverse incentive nationwide: contractors receive a fixed per-person payment, and they keep whatever they don’t spend on care. Every denied referral, every delayed surgery, every ignored symptom is money in the bank.
Georgia prisoners know this system intimately. Families know it. And now, a federal jury has put a $307.6 million price tag on the human cost.
Estelle v. Gamble: The Legal Foundation
The Jackson verdict rests on a legal principle established fifty years ago by the U.S. Supreme Court in Estelle v. Gamble (1976): prison officials may not exhibit “deliberate indifference to serious medical needs” of incarcerated people. Doing so constitutes cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment.
The standard requires two things. First, the medical need must be objectively serious — meaning that a reasonable doctor or patient would find it important enough to warrant treatment. Second, the prison official or contractor must have a “sufficiently culpable state of mind” — meaning they knew about the need and consciously disregarded it.
In Jackson’s case, the colostomy reversal was medically necessary, and Corizon’s own records made it clear they knew about the need. The jury’s massive punitive award suggests it believed the denial was driven not by medical judgment but by corporate policy.
This same standard applies to every prison healthcare case in America. It applies in Michigan. It applies in Georgia. It applies wherever private contractors are paid to provide care and choose instead to provide excuses.
What This Means for Prisoners and Families
For incarcerated people and their families, the Jackson verdict is a signal flare. It validates what they have been saying for years: that care is delayed, denied, and rationed in ways that cause suffering and death. It confirms that the system is not broken — it is working exactly as designed, to maximize profit at the expense of human beings.
More practically, the verdict demonstrates that these cases can be won — and won big. The $307.6 million award, if it survives appeal, will reshape the risk calculus for every plaintiff’s attorney evaluating a prison medical negligence case. It tells contingency firms across the country that the Eighth Amendment has real teeth when a jury is allowed to see the evidence.
For families navigating the system right now — fighting for a loved one’s medical care, begging for referrals, documenting every phone call and every ignored sick call — this verdict says: keep fighting. Keep documenting. The records you are gathering today may be the evidence a jury sees tomorrow.
“You have the power to stop them,” Jackson’s attorney told the jury. “Claw back that taxpayer money.”
The jury listened. Other juries will too.
The Industry on Notice
The Jackson verdict does not exist in isolation. In December 2022, another Michigan jury awarded $6.4 million to the family of Wade Jones, who died of alcohol withdrawal complications in a jail served by Corizon. The Sixth Circuit upheld that verdict in 2025. Across the country, private prison healthcare companies face a growing wave of litigation, legislative scrutiny, and public outrage.
Companies like YesCare (the successor to Corizon) and Wellpath — the two dominant players in the industry — now face an environment where a single case can produce a verdict larger than most of their annual contracts. The era of settling prisoner claims for five-figure sums may be ending.
The for-profit prison healthcare model has always depended on two things: that prisoners lack the resources to fight, and that the public doesn’t care enough to demand change. The Jackson verdict challenges both assumptions.
If you are reading about the conditions in Georgia prisons and are not actively taking actions like calling your senators or representatives, then YOU ARE complicit in the deaths that follow.
Call to Action: What You Can Do
Kohchise Jackson lived with a leaky colostomy bag for two years because a corporation decided his surgery wasn't profitable. A jury just awarded him $307.6 million. The same company operated in Georgia using identical practices. Share this story - silence about these deliberate cruelties makes every preventable death that follows partly your responsibility.
Spread the Word — It Takes 15 Seconds
Awareness without action changes nothing. Here’s how you can help push for accountability and real reform:
Join the GPS Advocacy Network — Sign up at https://gps.press/become-an-advocate/ and we’ll advocate on your behalf every week. GPS identifies your state legislators, crafts personalized letters on the most pressing prison issues, and sends them directly to the representatives who represent you. You receive a copy of every letter. It takes two minutes to sign up — we handle the rest.
Tell My Story — Are you or a loved one affected by Georgia’s prison system? GPS publishes first-person accounts from incarcerated people and their families. Submit your story at https://gps.press/category/tellmystory/ and help the world understand what’s really happening behind the walls.
Contact Your Representatives — Your state legislators control GDC’s budget, oversight, and the laws that created these failures. Find your Georgia legislators at https://gps.press/find-your-legislator/ or call Governor Kemp at (404) 656-1776 or the GDC Commissioner at (478) 992-5246.
Demand Media Coverage — Contact newsrooms at the AJC, local TV stations, and national criminal justice outlets. More coverage means more pressure.
Amplify on Social Media — Share this article and tag @GovKemp, @GDC_Georgia, and your local representatives. Use #GAPrisons, #PrisonReform, #GeorgiaPrisonerSpeak.
File Public Records Requests — Georgia’s Open Records Act gives every citizen the right to request incident reports, death records, staffing data, medical logs, and financial documents at https://georgiadcor.govqa.us/WEBAPP/_rs/SupportHome.aspx.
Attend Public Meetings — The Georgia Board of Corrections and legislative committees hold public meetings. Your presence is noticed.
Contact the Department of Justice — File civil rights complaints at https://civilrights.justice.gov. Federal oversight has forced abusive systems to change before.
Support Organizations Doing This Work — Donate to or volunteer with Georgia-based prison reform groups fighting for change on the ground.
Vote — Research candidates’ positions on criminal justice. Primary elections often determine outcomes in Georgia.
Contact GPS — If you have information about conditions inside Georgia’s prisons, reach us securely at GPS.press.
Further Reading
The Six Who Disappeared: Georgia’s Prison Death Cover-Up
GPS investigation revealing how GDC’s official mortality reports omitted six documented deaths, exposing systematic failures in death reporting and accountability.
Above the Law: GDC Defies Courts, DOJ, and Legislators
An examination of Georgia’s Department of Corrections’ pattern of ignoring federal court orders, DOJ findings, and legislative mandates — the same institutional defiance that allows medical neglect to persist.
Mission Failure: Georgia Spends $1.8 Billion on Prisons and $52 Per Person on Rehabilitation
How Georgia’s prison budget prioritizes warehousing over healthcare, programming, and rehabilitation — creating the conditions where medical neglect thrives.
Guthrie v. Evans: 13 Years of Reform, Erased Overnight
The story of how a landmark federal consent decree forced Georgia to improve prison conditions — and how the state systematically dismantled every reform the moment oversight ended.
Who Is Responsible for Georgia Prison Violence?
GPS traces the chain of responsibility for Georgia’s prison crisis from the dorm level to the Governor’s office, examining how systemic failures in staffing, healthcare, and oversight produce preventable suffering.
Research Explainers
GPS Research Explainers distill complex data and legal research into accessible briefings. These explainers are directly relevant to the issues covered in this article:
GPS Research Library — Mortality Data
GPS maintains comprehensive mortality data tracking every reported death in GDC custody, providing families and advocates with the documentation needed to identify patterns of medical neglect.
GPS Research Library — Staffing Crisis
Data briefings for legislators on how Georgia’s 15-year staffing low directly impacts healthcare delivery in state prisons, creating conditions where medical emergencies go unrecognized and untreated.
Explore the Data
GPS makes GDC statistics accessible to the public through several resources:
- GPS Statistics Portal — Interactive dashboards translating complex GDC reports into accessible formats, updated within days of official releases.
- GPS Lighthouse AI — Ask questions about Georgia’s prison system and get answers drawn from GPS’s investigative archive and data analysis.
- Machine-Readable Pages for Researchers — GPS maintains AI-optimized pages for data analysis:
- AI Content Index — https://gps.press/ai-index/
The AI Content Index has links to numerous machine readable pages, but this is all that is needed by an AI to fully understand all the data. You can learn more about using GPS Data with AI in are article on the topic:
How to Use GPS Data with AI Tools (https://gps.press/how-to-use-gps-data-with-ai-tools/)
A step-by-step guide showing researchers, advocates, families, and journalists how to use GPS’s machine-readable data pages with AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini to analyze Georgia prison conditions, statistics, and policy.
Contact GPS at media@gps.press for access to underlying datasets used in this analysis.
About Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS)
Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS) is a nonprofit investigative newsroom built in partnership with incarcerated reporters, families, advocates, and data analysts. Operating independently from the Georgia Department of Corrections, GPS documents the truth the state refuses to acknowledge: extreme violence, fatal medical neglect, gang-controlled dorms, collapsed staffing, fraudulent reporting practices, and unconstitutional conditions across Georgia’s prisons.
Through confidential reporting channels, secure communication, evidence verification, public-records requests, legislative research, and professional investigative standards, GPS provides the transparency the system lacks. Our mission is to expose abuses, protect incarcerated people, support families, and push Georgia toward meaningful reform based on human rights, evidence, and public accountability.
Every article is part of a larger fight — to end the silence, reveal the truth, and demand justice.
Footnotes
- Detroit Free Press, April 2 2026, https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2026/04/02/prison-health-care-verdict-307-6-million-corizon-kohchise-jackson-corizon/89431834007/ [↩]
- GovInfo Federal Court Records, https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCOURTS-mied-2_19-cv-13382 [↩]
- The Marshall Project, September 19 2023, https://www.themarshallproject.org/2023/09/19/corizon-yescare-private-prison-healthcare-bankruptcy [↩]
- Prison Legal News, January 1 2024, https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2024/jan/1/corizon-health-bankruptcy-delayed-revelation-attorneys-affair-mediator/ [↩]
- U.S. Senate letter to YesCare, October 24 2023, https://www.warren.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2023.10.24%20Letter%20re%20Corizon%20Texas%20Two-Step.pdf [↩]
- Prison Legal News, January 1 2022, https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2022/jan/1/usda-gives-1000000-grant-corizon-treat-more-sick-prisoners-remotely/ [↩]
- Harvard Political Review, October 11 2025, https://theharvardpoliticalreview.com/health-care-prison/ [↩]