DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - The Muscatine County sheriff violated federal law by denying records and access to employees involved in the repeated use of a stun gun on a woman, according to a lawsuit.
Disability Rights Iowa, an advocacy organization, claims in a lawsuit filed Wednesday that Muscatine County Sheriff Dave White refused to provide documents that the organization has sought as part of its own investigation into use of the stun gun at the county jail, The Des Moines Register reported (https://dmreg.co/Oo7k6Q ).
“We’re simply suing to enforce our access authority to obtain materials we’re entitled to under federal law,” said Disability Rights Iowa attorney Cyndy Miller.
Muscatine County Attorney Alan Ostergren told the newspaper that the lawsuit was a publicity stunt.
“From the beginning, they’ve not acted in good faith,” he said. “Their director pronounced us guilty before having all the facts and we think this lawsuit is more about generating publicity than it is about getting to the truth of what happened or protecting anybody with a disability.”
Disability Rights Iowa, which has federal authority to investigate abuse of people with mental illnesses, wants information about the treatment of Marie Franks, 58, on Oct. 7 at the county jail. A video shows she was shocked four times by Sgt. John Crump, while five or six jail staffers hovered over her. The video shows Franks was shackled or handcuffed at the time.
Franks was originally jailed after making multiple calls to 911 and hanging up, the newspaper reported. Her family said her actions weren’t intentional or malicious because she was reacting to changes in her medication. They also said Franks was denied access to her medication while in custody.
Ostergren said county officials have agreed to cooperate but they want more answers from Disability Rights Iowa about how the information with be used. Miller, the group’s attorney, said they’ve answered those questions but access to key documents and employees have still been denied.
The employees have been cleared of any professional or legal wrongdoing. The sheriff has told the Register that there is no internal report on the matter. The newspaper reported that White did not return a message left Wednesday.
The Muscatine County Democratic Central Committee requested in January that county supervisors open a bipartisan and independent investigation into the Franks case. No supervisor has responded to the letter, but Ostergren said that’s because he’s advised them not to answer questions because of the potential litigation.
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Information from: The Des Moines Register, https://www.desmoinesregister.com
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