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$100,000 Settlement in TX Restraint Chair/Pepper Spray Death
On February 22, 2000, Tarrant County, Texas agreed to pay a $100,000 settlement to the estate of James Livingston, 30, to settle a wrongful death suit. On July 6, 1999, Livingston was arrested on a trespassing warrant. He was allegedly abusive while being booked into the Tarrant county jail. As a result, he was placed in a "restraint chair" and pepper sprayed. Jailers claim that Livingston continued to struggle with them after he was in the restraint chair until they noticed he was motionless. They did not explain how a man can "struggle" while confined in a restraint chair.
On July 7, 1999, Livingston died at the John Smith Hospital in Ft. Worth, Texas. Livingston's estate filed suit claiming his death was due to mistreatment by jail employees. Livingston had a long history of mental illness but that did not seem to be the physical cause of his death.
Tarrant county will pay $50,000 of the settlement and John Smith Hospital will pay the remaining $50,000. Tarrant county commissioner Glen Whitley said, "It was a very tragic situation, and it's just good to put it behind everyone."
Apparently the maker of the restraint chair and the pepper spray manufacturer were not sued.
Source: Dallas Morning News
On July 7, 1999, Livingston died at the John Smith Hospital in Ft. Worth, Texas. Livingston's estate filed suit claiming his death was due to mistreatment by jail employees. Livingston had a long history of mental illness but that did not seem to be the physical cause of his death.
Tarrant county will pay $50,000 of the settlement and John Smith Hospital will pay the remaining $50,000. Tarrant county commissioner Glen Whitley said, "It was a very tragic situation, and it's just good to put it behind everyone."
Apparently the maker of the restraint chair and the pepper spray manufacturer were not sued.
Source: Dallas Morning News
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Related legal case
Case Name Unknown
| Year | 2000 |
|---|---|
| Conclusion | Settlement |
| Damages | 100000 |
| Injunction Status | N/A |