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Died in jail or a lockup

Ronald Spear

52 years old · died December 19, 2012 · Rikers Island Jail, New York County, New York

Ronald Spear, 52, used a cane to walk and needed dialysis for kidney failure, and his stepmother, Margarette Daniels, said the family had waited a long time for justice. He was held in the North Infirmary Command on Rikers Island, where in December 2012 federal prosecutors said a correction officer kicked him repeatedly in the head while other officers held him face down. The city medical examiner's office ruled his death a homicide, citing blunt force trauma to the head. The defense argued that Mr. Spear suffered a fatal heart rhythm problem during a struggle with officers, before any kicking. In December 2016 a federal jury convicted officer Brian Coll of violating Mr. Spear's civil rights, and the city later paid $2.75 million to settle a lawsuit by the family, which said he had struggled to get medical care for his kidney disease.

Cause of death, as reported: Killed by staff (disputed; neglect alleged). The medical examiner ruled blunt force trauma to the head a homicide, and federal prosecutors say officer Brian Coll repeatedly kicked him in the head while others held him down; the defense argued he died of a heart rhythm problem while resisting, before any kicking, and the family's lawsuit says staff ignored his need for medical care.

Reported by: city medical examiner's office (medical examiner or coroner); federal prosecutors (U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York) (outside investigators); federal jury verdict; defense lawyers Sam A. Schmidt and Joshua L. Dratel (family or their lawyers); Spear's family's lawsuit (family or their lawyers); federal judge Loretta Preska (court).

Lawsuit: His family sued New York City and the city settled the lawsuit for $2.75 million in 2014.

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