Mother Sues Silver Oaks Hospital After Deadly Sheriff's Shooting

From John Ferak’s article in the Joliet Patch

The Silver Oaks Behavioral Hospital is being sued by the mother of Jabbar Muhammad, the 21-year-old Joliet Township resident fatally shot by Will County Sheriff's deputies Desmond Warren and Nick Binnendyk less than five hours after being sent home from the psychiatric hospital in New Lenox.

On Oct. 27, 2021 — 10 days prior to the deadly police shootings of Muhammad and his 70-year-old grandfather, Eldred Wells — the East Joliet Fire Department got a 911 call from Wells. He notified authorities that his grandson attempted to take his own life with a knife at the house they shared on Middletree Road, according to the lawsuit.

Authorities also found a note at the scene stating, "... my time is off, I have to fix it ... Please help me be a monk, no smoke, no drink, drugs, only elevation."

When the ambulance arrived, Muhammad told East Joliet paramedics, "Your partner is the devil because I can feel him smelling my blood," the lawsuit noted.

At 2:38 a.m., Muhammad arrived at the Silver Cross Hospital emergency room in New Lenox, and told a social worker he injured himself because, "Satan wanted my seed. It's just a small cut, the devil did it," court documents show. "I'm a special person. I'm a special race (Novanoti) and they want our seed all (over) the world."

Muhammad Becomes A Danger To Himself: Sandberg Law

Muhammad told Silver Cross he was previously hospitalized several times for psychiatric treatment since December 2020, but denied previous attempts to take his own life. Silver Cross Hospital diagnosed Muhammad with psychosis, homicidal ideation and intention to self-harm, the lawsuit indicated.

"Jabbar admitted he wanted to kill people all the time, but denied it was directed toward any specific person," contended attorney Craig Sandberg.

The Sandberg Law Office in Deerfield is representing Rhonda Wells, Muhammad's mother, in the Will County lawsuit naming Silver Oaks, Dr. Soberekon Melvin Koko and Will County Sheriff Mike Kelley as defendants in their wrongful death case.

Joliet Patch left a voicemail Monday seeking comment about the lawsuit from a top administrator at Silver Oaks Behavioral Hospital, but she did not respond. Silver Oaks opened in 2019 as a joint venture between Silver Cross Hospital and US HealthVest, the lawsuit noted.

Around 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 27, 2021, Muhammad was admitted as a mental health patient at Silver Oaks because he was a danger to himself with psychosis, court records show.

On Oct. 28, 2021, he told a licensed social worker he was angry with family and that his living arrangement at his grandfather's house was "s**t," court records note. "Eldred had a bad temper and puts blame on Jabbar that resulted in Jabbar being hospitalized ..."

Muhammad Refuses To Take His Medications At Silver Oaks: Lawsuit

Five days later, at 11:10 p.m. on Nov. 2, 2021, Muhammad refused to take his anti-psychotic medication, Zyprexa, court records indicate.

At 3:49 p.m. on Nov. 3, 2021, a medical intern talked with Muhammad about his frustration with his admission and belief he would only be admitted at Silver Oaks for five days. Before his discharge, Muhammad told Dr. Koko there were knives in the home he shared with his grandfather, the lawsuit noted.

In preparation for Muhammad 's discharge, Silver Oaks medical staff talked with Eldred Wells on Nov. 5, 2021, and he confirmed he had a secured gun in his house, but "there was no mention or discussion about access to other lethal means, namely, knives that were present in the home and the need to secure those items," the plaintiff's lawyer argued.

On Muhammad 's last night at Silver Oaks, Nov. 5, 2021, and the following morning, Nov. 6, 2021, he refused to take his Zyprexa medication, which is prescribed to treat psychosis, court documents reflect.

When Silver Oaks discharged Muhammad at 11:50 a.m. on Nov. 6, 2021, that Saturday, Muhammad was prescribed Prozac for anti-depression and Zyprexa, the anti-psychotic. His main diagnosis was major depressive disorder severe with psychosis, the lawsuit indicated. His prognosis level was deemed "fair."

Upon being sent back to live with his grandfather that same afternoon, Will County's Sheriff's Office got a 911 call that Muhammad had a knife and was threatening his grandfather.

At 4:07 p.m. Will County deputies arrived at Eldred Wells' house and announced, "Sheriff's Department" upon being let inside by Muhammad's brother.

The lawsuit states both Muhammad and his grandfather died of multiple gunshots. "Silver Oaks Behavioral breached the standard of care by carelessly and negligently prematurely discharging Jabbar Muhammad on November 6, 2021," Sandberg argued.

Silver Oaks discharged Muhammad "before he was stable for discharge" and discharged him "to a residential environment that was not safe for him given his clinical condition," the lawsuit noted. "Jabbar Muhammad was discharged without sufficient coping strategies to avoid becoming a safety risk to himself and others."

Because Silver Oaks Behavioral Hospital deviated from the applicable standard of care, "Jabbar Muhammad became a participant in, first, a domestic dispute and, then, a police-involved interaction that significantly escalated when the deputies arrived, which resulted in him being shot multiple times, suffering significant and permanent injuries and which resulted in death," the wrongful death lawsuit filed by his mother Rhonda Wells stated.

Click here to read the full article on the Joliet Patch website.

The family of Jabbar Muhammad is represented by Craig M. Sandberg from Sandberg Law Office, P.C.