Glenn and Sons Lawsuit: Foster’s Jail Death and Federal Ruling

The Glenn Foster Jr. jail death lawsuit is a federal wrongful death case filed by the former New Orleans Saints defensive lineman’s widow against Pickens County, Alabama, its sheriff’s office, and individual deputies and jail staff, alleging that officers beat, tased, and choked Foster over three days in custody in December 2021 and denied him medical and psychiatric care. On December 5, 2024, a federal judge allowed the core claims — excessive force resulting in death, failure to intervene, and failure to supervise — to move toward trial.

How Foster Ended Up in the Pickens County Jail

On December 3, 2021, Reform, Alabama police stopped Foster on Highway 82 for alleged speeding and reckless driving. The stop turned into a high-speed chase that ended in a crash.¹ According to the family’s complaint, deputies wrestled Foster to the ground and slammed his head into concrete during the arrest.² He was booked into the Pickens County Jail on charges of reckless endangerment, attempting to elude police, and resisting arrest.³

Foster had a diagnosed history of bipolar disorder, and his family believes he was in a manic episode when he was stopped.⁴ Emergency medical personnel at the scene recommended a full medical exam or mental health evaluation. The lawsuit alleges that recommendation was ignored and Foster was taken directly to jail.⁵

What the Lawsuit Says Happened Inside the Jail

Over the next three days, the complaint alleges more than 24 hours of mistreatment. According to jail records referenced in news reports, Foster got into a fight with another inmate over a pair of socks and a separate altercation with a deputy and corrections officer, and was rebooked on simple assault and third-degree robbery charges.¹ Reform Police Chief Richard Black had negotiated a conditional bond that would have released Foster into medical care, but the sheriff’s office placed a hold on him.⁶

The lawsuit alleges that a deputy and a corrections officer pulled Foster from his cell, strapped him into a restraint chair, stripped him naked, and tased him repeatedly until he fell, vomited, and lost consciousness.⁷ Jail officials called EMS for a “vitality check,” and the responding crew asked to take Foster to a hospital. The lawsuit says that request was refused.⁵

The Day Foster Died

On the morning of December 6, 2021, a judge ordered Foster to undergo an in-patient psychiatric evaluation. His family had also filed to have him declared incompetent and to appoint a guardian.⁶ When jail staff prepared to transport him to Northport Medical Center, the lawsuit alleges Pickens County Jail Administrator Justin White forcibly yanked Foster by the neck into the transport vehicle while he was shackled.⁷ The complaint says White used what it describes as a chokehold, and that Foster never spoke again.⁸

When the vehicle reached the hospital, Foster was unresponsive, foaming at the mouth and nostrils, with discolored skin. He was pronounced dead about 30 minutes later.⁷ He was 31 and left behind four young children.

Two Autopsies, Two Findings

The Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences ruled Foster’s death natural, tied to hypertensive cardiovascular disease.⁴ The family commissioned an independent autopsy by Dr. Michael Baden, a former Chief Medical Examiner of New York City. Baden concluded Foster did not die of natural causes and found evidence of neck compression and strangulation, according to attorneys for the family.³ Glenn Foster Sr. said publicly that he saw wounds around his son’s neck and called the state’s natural-causes finding “a pack of lies.”⁹

No Criminal Charges Were Filed

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation handled the criminal investigation and turned its findings over to Tuscaloosa County District Attorney Hays Webb.¹⁰ A grand jury heard the evidence but did not indict any officer or jail employee.⁵ The family has said Pickens County officials told them body camera footage from the arrest was lost and that Foster’s personal belongings were destroyed.⁴

The Federal Wrongful Death Lawsuit

On December 6, 2023, two years to the day after Foster’s death, his widow Anny Pamela Foster filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. The case, Anny Pamela Foster v. Pickens County, et al. (No. 7:23-cv-01647-ACA), was brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and Alabama state law.⁸ Civil rights attorney Ben Crump and lawyers from DiCello Levitt represent the family.²

Who Is Being Sued

Defendants include Pickens County, the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, former Sheriff Todd Hall, and former Jail Administrator Justin White, along with other deputies and jail staff.¹¹ White left Pickens County in 2022 and became jail administrator at the Walker County Sheriff’s Office.¹²

The Claims

The complaint brings wrongful death under Alabama law, excessive force under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments, deliberate indifference to Foster’s medical needs, failure to intervene, negligent training and supervision, municipal liability under Monell (alleging Pickens County maintained an unconstitutional custom of using pain to compel compliance), and a state-law tort of outrage. It alleges no officer or jail employee was disciplined, terminated, or reprimanded over Foster’s death.⁸

The December 2024 Ruling

On December 5, 2024, U.S. District Judge Annemarie Carney Axon ruled on the defendants’ motion to dismiss. She dismissed the tort of outrage and substantive due process claims, dismissed parts of eight other counts, and dismissed former Chief Deputy Greg Carr from the case entirely.¹¹ She allowed the case to move forward on its core allegations — excessive force resulting in death, failure to intervene, and failure to supervise — keeping parts of four counts against defendants including Hall and White.¹³

A Separate Lawsuit Over Foster’s Brain

In December 2022, the family filed a separate suit in Orleans Parish Civil District Court against Jacob Schoen and Son Funeral Home, its parent company Carriage Services Inc., and funeral director John Appel Jr. That case is not part of the federal wrongful death action. It alleges the funeral home destroyed Foster’s brain without the family’s consent, preventing them from having it tested for Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy given his NFL career and mental health history.¹⁴¹⁵

Where the Case Stands

The federal wrongful death lawsuit is active in the Northern District of Alabama, with no settlement, trial date, or verdict publicly announced. Ben Crump has called on the U.S. Department of Justice to open a pattern-or-practice investigation into the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office.¹⁶

1
NOLA.com. Lawsuit Says Saints Player Glenn Foster Was Tortured in Jail
2
DiCello Levitt. Wrongful Death Case of Former NFL Player Glenn Foster Jr. Can Move Forward
3
NBC News. Autopsy of Former NFL Player Glenn Foster Suggests Evidence of Strangulation
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MPB Online. Glenn Foster Jr.’s Family Uses Super Bowl to Bring Awareness to His Death, Demand Justice
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ESPN. Ex-Saints Glenn Foster Jr. Family Sues Police for Wrongful Death
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People. Glenn Foster Lawsuit: Ex-NFL Player Dies in Police Custody
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ABC 33/40. Alabama Pickens County Sheriff’s Office Glenn Foster Jr. Wrongful Death Lawsuit
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WWLTV. Foster v. Pickens County Complaint
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Fight Back News. Family of Glenn Foster Jr. Demands Justice Ahead of Super Bowl LIX
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Tuscaloosa Thread. Glenn Foster Death: Full Story
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WBRC. Federal Judge Rules Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Former Pickens County Sheriff Can Move Forward
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WBRC. Same Jail Administrator in Place When Two Inmates Died in Two Counties
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Washington Times. Lawsuit Over Former NFL Player Glenn Foster Jr. Jail Death Can Proceed
14
Fox 8 Live. Funeral Home Mishandled Former Saints Player’s Brain After Death in Police Custody, Lawsuit Claims
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AL.com. Funeral Home Mutilated and Unlawfully Disposed of Ex-Saint Glenn Foster Jr.’s Body, Lawsuit Alleges
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WWNO. Glenn Foster Jr.’s Family Use Super Bowl to Bring Awareness to His Death, Demand Justice