Settlement of $1.5 million reached in Bosh suit

Jan. 29--Members of the Cherokee County Governmental Building Authority have reportedly agreed to a $1.5 million settlement in a federal lawsuit that alleged an inmate was beaten while he was being booked into the Cherokee County Detention Center in 2011.

Daniel Bosh claimed he was being booked into CCDC in May of 2011 after his arrest for failing to pay a ticket, and said that during the process, he was assaulted by members of the CCDC staff. He claimed he was also denied medical treatment for a couple of days.

Video released to the Daily Press as a result of a Freedom of Information Act request filed in late 2011 shows a portion of the scuffle; the footage did not contain audio.

In the video, Bosh is shown handcuffed inside the booking area of CCDC. He was then approached by a CCDC employee, who smashed Bosh's head into a counter, then grabbed Bosh's head and forced it onto the floor of the facility.

Court documents suggest Bosh suffered a spinal fracture during the incident.

As the case progressed in federal court, it was revealed that other security footage may have shown the incident at other angles. But jail officials decided not to save the footage, and other files eventually overrode the video.

U.S. District Judge James Payne wrote in one opinion that the loss of video could have had "significant implications."

District 27 prosecutors who reviewed the case before a lawsuit was filed declined to issue any criminal charges in the assault of Bosh, citing the report from CCDC employees and Bosh's previous criminal history.

Jail administrators maintained their force was reasonable and alleged Bosh appeared as if he was going to spit on authorities while he was shouting obscenities.

And attorneys for CCGBA and CCDC employees argued additional camera angles would not have been helpful in the investigation of Bosh's case. They also suggested Bosh was thought to be intoxicated when he was being booked into the jail, and made threats toward employees.

Bosh died in 2014, but family members continued pressing the lawsuit against the county.

District 2 Commissioner and former CCGBA board member Bobby Botts was involved during the settlement discussions, and said Thursday that the majority of the settlement -- $900,000 -- should be covered by insurance; the jail authority, which is funded through a county tax, will pay the remaining $600,000.

"We had the money to settle," Botts said. "It won't hurt operations or impair anything. I was glad to see it get done and over with, I just wish that -- we could have probably won the case."

Botts said attorneys for CCGBA recommended the authority OK the settlement with Bosh's estate.

Members of the authority approved the settlement during an emergency meeting Monday, according to court documents. The group met in executive session and did not reveal details of the settlement in minutes of the meeting.

Current members of the CCGBA include District 3 Commissioner Clif Hall, Sheriff Norman Fisher, George Kirk, Bobby Mayfield and Billy Bob Dougherty.

As part of the settlement agreement, thousands of dollars in sanctions imposed against the jail authority could be waived, according to court records.

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