Body-slammed inmate agrees to $500K settlement with county

Jailer faces Sept. trial in Las Cruces court

LAS CRUCES — Doña Ana County has agreed to pay a half-million dollars to settle a federal lawsuit filed by a man who was body-slammed by a jail officer while he was being booked into the detention center in 2015.

Public records obtained by the Sun-News show that the man, Timothy Black, agreed to settle his lawsuit against the county for $500,000. Black’s lawsuit centered on an alleged battery incident at the Doña Ana County Detention Center in November 2015.

After Black had been arrested Nov. 27 on a charge of resisting a police officer, he was transported to the detention center. But during the booking process, he was thrown by a jail officer, Luis Ruiz, and reportedly lost consciousness after hitting his head on the floor.

The entire incident was captured on surveillance video. It shows a Black standing and facing a wall with hands handcuffed behind his back. Later, Ruiz can be seen grabbing Black from behind and throwing him onto the floor — where Black appears to lose consciousness.

In his lawsuit, Black alleged that the officer had violated his civil rights, specifically protections against excessive use of force and cruel and unusual punishment. He also sued over claims of battery, alleging he had “suffered pain and injuries” as a result of Ruiz’s action.

Black’s attorney, Jerome O’Connell, said Friday that Black “is pleased that this ordeal is behind him.”

O’Connell added: “(Black) hopes that what happened to him will not occur to any other persons in custody at the DACDC and that law enforcement will examine this incident closely and work to ensure that the civil rights of everyone, regardless of social stature, are protected and valued.”

By the time the settlement had been reached, the case was well into the discovery phase, according O’Connell, who had been preparing to go to trial.

In signing the settlement, Black agreed to dismiss the lawsuit against the county and Ruiz, who is still employed at the detention center and facing criminal charges in connection with the incident.

The lawsuit was formally dismissed on April 14. A week earlier, Black had signed off on the settlement, according to a copy of the agreement the SunNews obtained last week under a public records request.

The agreement makes clear that the settlement should not be construed as an admission of liability by the county or Ruiz. It also states that Black “is settling and compromising disputed claims” that the county expressly denied.

A county official said the settlement was paid by the county’s insurer, the New Mexico Association of Counties.

Ruiz, meanwhile, is scheduled to stand trial in September in 3rd Judicial District Court in Las Cruces. Last year, he was indicted by a Doña Ana County grand jury and charged with one count of aggravated battery resulting in great bodily harm, a third-degree felony.

If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison. He has previously pleaded not guilty to the charge.