MN Jail Nurse Refuses To Treat Inmate, Who Dies… Finally Charged!
A Minnesota jail nurse is now facing second-degree manslaughter and felony criminal neglect charges nearly six years after an inmate under her care died—an incident that led to a $2.6 million settlement and inspired a new state law to prevent similar tragedies.
According to the criminal complaint, 27-year-old Hardel Sherrell was booked into the Beltrami County Jail on August 24, 2018. Despite high blood pressure and a history of respiratory failure, his initial condition appeared stable. Three days later, Sherrell began experiencing chest pain and tingling in his left hand. He received an electrocardiogram (EKG) and painkillers, and he reported that he had stopped taking his blood pressure medication months earlier.
Over the following days, Sherrell’s health deteriorated further. He frequently fell out of his bunk and complained of numbness in his legs. On August 31, he was observed lying on a mat, unable to move; his mouth drooped, and his speech was slurred. A jail doctor suspected Guillain-Barré Syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder. Hospital tests, however, led an emergency room physician to diagnose him with “malingering and weakness” before sending him back to the jail.
When 37-year-old nurse Michelle Rose Skroch—then employed by MEnD Correctional Care, LLC—came on duty September 1, she was briefed about Sherrell’s rapidly worsening condition. Prosecutors allege she simply stood at his cell door, refused to conduct any standard medical assessment, and told Sherrell he could walk if he wanted to. When he begged for help, she allegedly stated she “would not bargain with him.”
Across two days, Skroch is accused of never taking Sherrell’s vital signs, even as he struggled to eat, drink, or go to the bathroom unassisted. The complaint further states she told a jail doctor that Sherrell was improving, despite video footage apparently showing him taking rapid, shallow breaths. She purportedly told correctional officers he was “perfectly fine.”
Around 4:46 p.m. on September 2, officers discovered Sherrell unresponsive; he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. An autopsy showed he died from pneumonia and cerebral edema (brain swelling), with a separate pathologist concluding the cause of death was complications from Guillain-Barré Syndrome.
A correctional health expert reviewing the case stated that Skroch failed to perform the “most basic nursing care,” labeling the lack of vital sign checks on a critically ill patient a “tremendous breach” of duty. Medical experts believe Sherrell likely would have survived had he received proper treatment.
Sherrell’s mother filed a lawsuit against the county and MEnD, resulting in a $2.6 million settlement. In response to the case, Minnesota lawmakers passed the “Hardel Sherrell Act,” granting the Department of Corrections greater oversight of county jails.
Skroch, whose nursing license has been revoked, was arrested Friday and charged with second-degree manslaughter (culpable negligence) and two counts of felony criminal neglect. She is scheduled to appear in court on April 11.
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