A former Georgia prison inmate is suing state corrections officials, alleging that he lost his left hand and suffered lasting damage to his right hand after being forced to handle frozen meat without proper protection and then denied prompt medical care.
Ronald Allen, of Tucker, Ga., filed the federal lawsuit in the Middle District of Georgia against the Georgia Department of Corrections, Commissioner Tyrone Oliver and several prison and medical staff members.
The complaint says Allen was assigned to separate frozen beef patties in a prison kitchen in April 2024 and was given only thin disposable gloves, not insulated gloves meant for work in freezing conditions.
According to the filing, Allen quickly began experiencing severe pain and discoloration in both hands after working with the frozen meat. He says prison staff sent him to the medical unit, but no meaningful treatment followed. The lawsuit alleges that prison medical providers repeatedly minimized his symptoms, failed to order appropriate testing and delayed stronger care even as his fingers worsened.
The complaint says Allen first reported circulation problems and hand pain in April 2024, but weeks passed before he received meaningful in-person treatment. By then, the filing says, his fingers had turned purple and cold, and the injury had become far more serious.
Allen’s lawsuit accuses corrections leaders and medical staff of deliberate indifference and negligence. It argues that top officials knew about dangerous staffing shortages and unsafe prison conditions but failed to correct them. The filing also cites federal findings criticizing Georgia’s prison system for understaffing and inadequate medical care.
Allen was eventually sent to an outside hospital, where he underwent more intensive treatment, according to the complaint. The filing says he later required multiple surgeries and, by February 2026, had his left hand amputated.
The lawsuit seeks damages, attorney’s fees and punitive damages.