Jackson County in Missouri, the state's second-largest county, has agreed to a $1.2 million settlement with the parents of a 21-year-old man with mental health issues who died in custody at a local jail.
The settlement was approved by the Jackson County Legislature in Kansas City, related to an incident that occurred in 2021. According to a lawsuit filed by the man's parents, their son, who was experiencing mental health distress, repeatedly stated "I can't breathe" while being restrained by jail staff before his death in a restraint chair. The attorney representing the parents revealed that jail surveillance captured the events leading up to the young man's death, though this footage has not been released publicly.
The lawsuit implicated three jail guards and two healthcare companies contracted by the county. However, the settlement pertains solely to Jackson County, with the case against the two companies scheduled for trial in September.
The deceased was arrested on December 9, 2021, after reportedly shooting through his apartment door in Kansas City, mistaking imagined intruders for real ones. He informed the police about his lack of sleep over several days, hallucinations of demons, and his ongoing detox from alcohol. Despite these mental health concerns, the lawsuit claims that he did not receive a mental health evaluation upon being booked into the Jackson County Detention Center on December 10.
The lawsuit describes the man's deteriorating condition in the jail, where he was allegedly left in a cell without food or water for eight hours, exhibiting unusual behaviors such as conversing with imaginary people and eating toilet paper. Later that evening, jail staff entered his cell and subdued him as he screamed about his inability to breathe and feeling as though he was dying.
He was handcuffed, dressed in a "suicide smock" designed to prevent self-harm, and strapped to a restraint chair. Despite his complaints of breathing difficulties, the lawsuit states that he was not examined at the nurse's station and was later found unconscious in his cell. He was moved to another cell while still unconscious, and subsequent attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful. He was declared dead at a hospital.
In response to the incident, a spokesperson for the Jackson County Sheriff stated that the safety and well-being of all inmates remain a priority, but declined further comment due to the ongoing litigation.
The same attorney had previously represented the family of another man who died in 2017 in the jail's restraint chair, a case in which Jackson County settled for $150,000. In that instance, the death was ruled accidental due to drug intoxication.
Jackson County is the second most populous county in Missouri, home to around 717,000 residents, trailing only St. Louis County with approximately 998,000 residents.
