Secured $2.3 Million Combined Settlement in Wrongful Death Jail Suicide Lawsuit in Sherburne County

Lynas v. Stang, et al.

Robins Kaplan attorneys secured a $2.3 million combined settlement on behalf of a client in a wrongful death lawsuit brought against Sherburne County and MEnD. Our client’s son was suffering from recent drug and alcohol use withdrawal when he was arrested for a DWI. He was declared an “urgent referral to medical” when first arriving at the Anoka County Workhouse. He was not seen by medical personnel and was transferred to Sherburne County Jail shortly after.

Mental health screening answers indicated that the client’s son should not be cleared for general population housing, but he was anyway. He made it known that he was struggling mentally and was suicidal. He was not prescribed any anxiety medication and was continually given low suicide risk screen scores, despite his own words. The Sherburne County Jail also failed to appropriately conduct well-being checks on him. Eventually, an officer entered his cell to find that he had committed suicide.  

He was pronounced dead at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, MN. The settlement included $1 million to be awarded from MEnD and $1.3 million to be awarded from Sherburne County. Robins Kaplan and it’s attorneys hope that the settlement will prompt jail reforms in the future.