The family of a 23-year-old man who died by suicide in the Sherburne County jail has reached a $1.5 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit.
Family of man who died by suicide in Sherburne County jail reaches $1.5M settlement
Justice L. White, 23, hanged himself inside the same cell where another inmate died by suicide three years earlier.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
July 16, 2024 at 8:46PM
Justice L. White died at the hospital on April 21, 2020, 11 days after he hanged himself inside a segregated unit at the Sherburne County jail.
Christine M. Roybal, White’s aunt and trustee for his family, sought monetary damages for the loss of life “due to the deliberate indifference of the defendants,” according to a complaint filed earlier this year in federal court. The lawsuit named the county, as well as two correctional officers who were assigned to White’s housing unit.
According to the complaint, White was indicted by a grand jury in U.S. District Court for a criminal sexual assault that allegedly took place on the Red Lake reservation in 2015. He was arrested in October 2019 and placed in the Sherburne County jail — which often houses federal detainees — in December 2019.
Jail intake forms documented that White had previously tried to kill himself, and the jail’s electronic management system flagged him as suicidal.
The complaint stated correctional officers conducted well-being checks too quickly and that from the catwalk, where officers checked on White, there wasn’t a clear view of the entire cell.
The lawsuit cited a 2018 inspection report where the jail was found to be violating inmate well-being check regulations because they were being conducted “at too fast a pace.” Inspection reports conducted before White’s death also recommended jail staff stop using the catwalk for well-being checks, according to the complaint.
White was found hanged in the same cell where another inmate, James Lynas, killed himself in the same manner three years earlier. A lawsuit stemming from that death resulted in a $1.3 million settlement from the county, as well as $1 million from the jail medical provider.
According to his obituary, White worked for a construction company, and liked to draw and listen to music.
Minnesotans and others struggling with thoughts of suicide or other mental health crises can receive immediate help from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
The winners will be honored Sept. 26 and each will receive a $7,500 grant to give to a nonprofit of their choice.
