City of Charlotte reaches lawsuit settlement after man dies in CMPD custody

CHARLOTTE — The City of Charlotte has reached a settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit.

The suit was filed by the family of Harold Easter, who died in the custody of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in January 2020. His family said officers failed to get him medical help after he was arrested during a drug investigation.

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Officers suspected Easter swallowed cocaine during a traffic stop. They had taken to a CMPD holding room and left him there when, 45 minutes later, he collapsed on the floor.

However, it was another 10 minutes before officers found him and called for an ambulance.

Easter later died at the hospital.

Easter’s family filed the suit on claims of wrongful death, negligence, punitive damages and constitutional rights violations, and sought more than $25,000.

Channel 9 is working to learn more about the details of the settlement.

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Family files lawsuit after man dies in CMPD custody

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