The state of Ohio has agreed to pay $17.5 million to a 21-year-old man who was paralyzed after he was tackled by correctional officers, his attorney announced Monday.
Seth Fletcher was two months away from his release from the Chillicothe Correctional Institution when two prison guards tackled and struck him with "sadistic and malicious force" in April 2020, resulting in critical injuries, including quadriplegia, according to the lawsuit.
"The torture and crippling of a prisoner in America sounds medieval.
As horrific as this case is, I want to thank the Ohio Attorney General's office and Governor Dewine for accepting responsibility in this most horrific of cases.
This abuse should never happen again," attorney Geoffrey Fieger said in a statement.
When Fletcher had asked for water, the attorneys claimed the officers poured it over his face and then one posted on Facebook, "we also water board[ed] him LMAO.".
Fletcher had been serving a two-year prison term for pandering sex material involving minors when he was 18. »