$1.2M Deal Approved in Lawsuit Over Michigan Jail Death

A $1.2 million deal in a federal lawsuit over the alcohol-withdrawal death of a woman who was in custody at the Lenawee County jail in Adrian has been approved.

Thirty-seven-year-old Brenda Sue Smith was arrested for parole violation in 2007. She went through severe alcohol withdrawal for three days but didn’t get treatment until she lost conscious and died at a hospital.

The Daily Telegram reports the settlement approved Friday with a doctor and the county’s insurance company in U.S. District Court in Detroit ends years of litigation. After fees for lawyers, money is to go to family of Smith.

In 2011, U.S. District Judge David Lawson in Detroit said that there’s evidence many people could have helped Smith.