LAWSUIT SETTLEMENT
October 15, 2004

Jefferson County has agreed to settle a federal lawsuit filed by the family of Kevin Wayne Bledsoe. Mr. Bledsoe was arrested by Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies on March 24, 2001. They arrested Mr. Bledsoe after he assaulted one of the deputies that had responded to a report of a disturbance at a Port Hadlock supermarket parking lot.

Shortly after his arrest, Mr. Bledsoe was booked into the Jefferson County Jail. Mr. Bledsoe went into cardiac arrest and died while at the jail. Dr. Daniel Selove, the medical examiner that performed an autopsy on Mr. Bledsoe following his death, determined Mr. Bledsoe’s cause of death to be “acute methamphetamine intoxication,” with “stressful restraints” and “dilated cardiomyopathy” listed as contributing factors because they increased his chance of death due to the methamphetamine intoxication.

In addition, an independent investigation was conducted at the time of the incident by the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office. The Clallam County investigation determined that the Jefferson County deputies did not act improperly, and that the deputies’ actions did not cause Mr. Bledsoe’s death. No disciplinary action was taken against the deputies.

Jefferson County contested the facts as asserted by Mr. Bledsoe’s attorneys in the lawsuit. Jefferson County also contested liability. The County’s insurers entered into a settlement agreement in order to resolve the matter and to avoid a lengthy and protracted trial. Jefferson County explicitly denied any wrongdoing in the settlement agreement.