Judge approves $10 million settlement in Jamal Sutherland case

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A judge has officially approved a $10 million settlement agreement between Jamal Sutherland’s family and government entities involved in the case.

Last month, Charleston County Council voted unanimously to settle the case after meeting with lawyers and discussing the settlement before voting on it.

The order approving the settlement listed Amy Sutherland, Jamal’s mother, as a representative for the her son’s estate as a plaintiff, and listed the defendants as Charleston County, the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office and the City of North Charleston.

Sutherland, a 31-year-old Goose Creek resident, was repeatedly tased at the detention center this past January less than a day after being arrested by North Charleston Police on a misdemeanor assault and battery charge at a facility serving people with mental illnesses. He died shortly after being extracted from his jail cell.

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