An Ohio group home is under scrutiny following allegations that a man with “intellectual and/or developmental disabilities” was negligently allowed to suffer from severe constipation for weeks, resulting in a fatal accumulation of impacted feces weighing over 20 pounds, according to a lawsuit.

The legal complaint, filed by the family of James Stewart, accuses the Clear Skies Ahead group home in Bazetta Township of negligence, leading to the 41-year-old’s “entirely avoidable death.” The lawsuit claims that the facility failed to take action for weeks despite the man’s condition.

James Stewart, who had been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffective disorder with impulse control disorder, was on medication that exacerbated his constipation, the complaint states. His family explains that Stewart lived at Clear Skies because he required daily care and supervision to ensure his safety.

Tragically, Stewart passed away on November 15, 2024, after repeatedly informing staff about his constipation, which he said lasted “several weeks to as long as a month,” according to the lawsuit.

The complaint further describes Stewart’s deteriorating condition in the days leading up to his death. Normally described as a happy, friendly individual who brought joy to those around him, Stewart became despondent and low-energy, frequently expressing abdominal pain, the lawsuit claims.

Stewart allegedly showed “visible” signs of his severe constipation, including bruising to his abdominal area “that was noticeable upon any reasonable inspection.” The complaint says staffers with Fairhaven Industries, which was contracted by Clear Skies, did not notify Stewart’s physician of his condition, nor did they notify his family.

“[Stewart] complained of abdominal pain for several days, had not had a bowel movement in several weeks, and had a long, rectangular bruise (light purple shade) across his abdomen,” the complaint says. “Clear Skies Ahead and Defendant Fairhaven Industries, Incorporated, did not have a system in place for their staff to monitor and record bowel movements for residents, including James.”

This allegedly led to the group home and its workers “missing completely that James had not had a bowel movement.” Stewart tried telling staff that he was “not feeling well and that he had abdominal pain,” which he said he experienced consistently, but nobody took his complaints seriously, the complaint says.

“[A staff member] instructed James to ‘sit on the toilet,’” the complaint alleges, noting how the suggestion came the day Stewart died. “Even though he sat on the toilet for some time, James could not have a bowel movement.”

A Clear Skies Ahead manager later found James in his room “unresponsive, not breathing, and with no pulse,” according to his family. The Bazetta Township Fire Department arrived on the scene shortly after and noted that James had a “discolored line across his abdomen, and that his abdomen was significantly distended — or swollen — and rigid to touch,” the complaint says. Medics transported Stewart to a local hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead.

The autopsy performed by the county coroner revealed that Stewart’s colon was “obstructed with hardened stool for so long that the collection of impacted feces in his colon weighed over 20 pounds, putting so much pressure on his internal organs that it caused tension pneumoperitoneum — gas from inside James’s bowel forcing its way into his abdomen through microtears in the wall of his intestines,” according to the complaint.

“Group homes like Clear Skies Ahead are entrusted with the care of our most vulnerable loved ones,” said attorney Michael Mooney, with Michael Hill Trial Law, who is representing the family. “What happened to James is a heartbreaking reminder of what can occur when that responsibility is ignored. This lawsuit is about accountability and ensuring no other family ever endures a loss like this.”

Clear Skies Ahead and Fairhaven did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for comment.