The Pullman Police Department recently settled a lawsuit with a former Washington State University student for $500,000, according to court documents.
The lawsuit, filed in August in the U.S. District Court of Eastern Washington, alleged Pullman police officers used excessive force and failed to follow department-mandated mental health training while taking Kyle North into protective custody at Jack in the Box on Aug. 17, 2016. The Daily News reported on the settlement Dec. 7, but the amount of the settlement had not been disclosed.
According to court documents, North, on Aug. 17, 2016, asked the manager of Jack in the Box in Pullman to call police because he feared he was being followed. North suffers from schizoaffective disorder.
When Officer Michael Sontgerath arrived, he asked North to follow him in his vehicle to Pullman Regional Hospital, but as they began to move toward the exit, North allegedly experienced a hallucination and refused to leave. North said he believed there were people outside who wanted to hurt him.
As North continued to resist police, officers during the encounter allegedly broke his arm while restraining him, dragged him by the legs and his broken arm, put him in a choke hold and used a Taser him while he was restrained.
