Judge Rules Nurse Whistleblower Mistreated by Wisconsin Department of Corrections Managers

By Aaron Poehler

Published on January 17, 2008

Ward was subpoenaed to appear at a hearing for an unnamed inmate protesting his medical treatment after the inmate obtained a copy of a letter Ward had written which criticized the performance of the physician treating the inmate. After the inmate claimed Ward provided him with the letter, DOC officials accused her of doing so and further charged her with submitting improper medical review forms and allowing the inmate to make free copies of his medical records, rather than charging him according to DOC policy. Ward denied providing the letter to the inmate, argued that the health services unit she was working at did not have the correct form on file, forcing her to submit an improper form, and said she was unaware of the policy requiring inmates to be charged for copies.

Judge Cohn also found that DOC chief legal counsel Kevin Potter attempted to undermine Ward's testimony in the case by submitting a letter which fraudulently claimed Ward was under investigation for fraternizing with the inmate in question.

In her judgment, Cohn ordered the DOC to clear Ward's personnel record of references to the improper disciplinary actions and to reimburse Ward for her attorney's fees in the case.

Comment on this article →