Inmate gets $70,000 in mistreatment claim

ELKO — An Elko County man has been awarded $70,000 in a settlement of his lawsuit alleging mistreatment while in the county jail.

County commissioners on Thursday approved the award to 39-year-old Chace Call, who was arrested in Elko in June on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance.

The Elko Daily Free Press reported the action was taken on the advice of county attorney Kristin McQueary, who said litigation would cost more and that insurance covers all but a $25,000 deductible.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court, states Call fell from a top bunk and fractured a femur, but deputies accused him of “playing games” after he failed to comply with orders to stand.

The lawsuit claims more than 30 hours passed between the fall and medical treatment.