$380,000 settlement in Cook County Jail abuse case
by Ed Lyon
A 26-year-old law student and former medical student was held in Chicago’s Cook County Jail for 27 days. She was arrested for the non-violent misdemeanor offense and was being held for extradition to another state for a non-violent misdemeanor offense.
“Jane Doe,” despite her minimum-security classification, was housed in a maximum-security cellblock at the jail. She suffered a deep stab wound to her thigh, rape, a broken nose and loss of a tooth by predators who labeled her “snow bunny,” “cracker” and “Pocahontas.”
Jailers refused to help Doe and outed her attempts to secure their help to the other prisoners, who then added “snitch” to Doe's litany of names.
Doe's sisters, one being a prominent physician and the other an accomplished human rights attorney, began aggressively advocating for her. Doe was later extradited to the out of state detainer where she finally received medical treatment.
Noted exoneration attorney Kathleen T. Zellner filed a 42 USC § 1983 suit on Doe's behalf, and the case settled on April 23, 2017, for $380,000 by approval of the Cook County Board. [See: PLN, July 2018, pp. 42-43.]
See: Doe v. McCoy, et al., U.S.D.C. (N.D. Ill), Case No. l:14-cv-08296. Additional source: chicagotribune.com
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Related legal case
Doe v. McCoy, et al., U.S.D.C. (N.D. Ill)
| Year | 2017 |
|---|---|
| Cite | Case No. 14-cv-8296 |
| Level | District Court |
| Conclusion | Settlement |
| Damages | 380,000 |