Brent Thurman: Left to languish

In July while working on a story about how vulnerable populations were dealing with the intense heat, I photographed Brent Thurman. He was lying on the sidewalk, unable to move and trying to drink fluids. He struggled to tell me that security officers from Hillcrest had dumped him on the sidewalk overnight and he couldn’t move to help himself. The Tulsa World obtained video that appeared to corroborate his story. Residents in the downtown condominium that he lived behind found him later in the day. They called an ambulance and got him to Saint Francis Hospital and advocated for his care. Turned out he had an infection. After a spinal surgery, he was paralyzed for weeks. He has since been transferred to a nursing home near Arkansas, and remains somewhat immobile. See the video below.