ACLU sues Otter Tail County, sheriff and jail staff for depriving inmate of food, water for days

The ACLU of Minnesota has sued Otter Tail County, its sheriff and correctional officers at its jail, alleging unlawful punishment of a man known to them who has serious mental health issues.

Ramsey Kettle, 33, a member of White Earth Nation and lifelong Otter Tail County resident, was jailed in February on charges that were dropped two months later. The ACLU says that the Sheriff’s Office attempted to cover up the mistreatment, but a whistleblower working at the jail reported the abuse to the state. A 46-page lawsuit was filed this week in U.S. District Court of Minnesota.

“Mr. Kettle was subjected to extreme, punitive treatment in violation of his constitutional rights and standards for basic human dignity,” the ACLU said in a statement. “Otter Tail County officers, with approval of the acting jail administrator, kept Mr. Kettle locked up in solitary confinement for days without food, water, or appropriate medical and mental health care.”

Otter Tail County spokesperson Shannon Terry said in an email to the Minnesota Star Tribune that “[d]ue to the impending litigation, Otter Tail County has no comment or statement at this time.” Terry did confirm that Kettle was released from custody April 24, when the charges were dropped.

Kettle was immediately placed in solitary confinement after he arrived at the jail Feb. 9, the lawsuit says. Jail staff didn’t assess Kettle’s poor mental health, which the ACLU says was well-documented and known to officers. The ACLU says Kettle “exhibited increasing signs of physical and mental distress” and officers allegedly “laughed at him, mocked him, and left him to suffer.”

Kettle had been booked at the jail multiple times before.

In March 2022, he was convicted of making terroristic threats and sentenced to two years at the Rush City Correctional Facility. On the day he was scheduled to be released, after serving his full sentence, he was charged in Otter Tail with four counts of aggravated witness tampering stemming from the conviction.

“Rather than going home on February 9, 2024, as he had anticipated for nearly two years, he was transferred to Otter Tail County Jail to await trial on these new charges. The new charges were unfounded and intended solely to keep Mr. Kettle incarcerated,” the lawsuit states.

District Judge Johnathan Judd dismissed the charges as lacking foundation.

Back at Otter Tail in February, jail staff told Kettle he had “outstanding disciplinary time” from when he was there nearly two years prior. This discipline was 60 days in solitary confinement.

In solitary confinement, Kettle smeared feces in his cell, and jail staff were told to withhold food and water from him until he cleaned the cell, the suit claims. The suit alleges Kettle was without food for about 52 hours and staff turned off water to his cell so he could not drink from the sink or flush the toilet.

Jail staff also couldn’t see through the feces-covered door window to confirm Kettle’s well-being. Nevertheless, they documented that he was well throughout the weekend, the suit says.

“Officers left Mr. Kettle in a biohazardous, contaminated cell” without food, water, or medical attention, “despite obvious signs that Mr. Kettle was experiencing mental distress,” the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit asserts the jail administrator and corrections officers covered up their actions, falsified documents and lied to the Minnesota Department of Corrections about what happened. It names Sheriff Barry Fitzgibbons and 11 correctional officers, including two acting sergeants, as defendants.

“Our constitution is tested by how we treat those on the margins, with the fewest rights, when no one is looking,” ACLU-MN Staff Attorney Catherine Ahlin-Halverson said in a statement. “And this was a total failure for which Otter Tail County and its officers must be held accountable.”