Tory Sanders
Tory Sanders, 28, was a man who had asked for mental health help before he was taken to the Mississippi County Jail in Charleston, Missouri, in May 2017. Officers subdued him in his cell on May 5, 2017, and he was taken to a hospital in Sikeston, where he died that night. A lawsuit brought by his mother, Quinta Sanders, alleges that jailers used a stun gun through a food tray opening, that a deputy used pepper spray, and that former sheriff Cory Hutcheson pressed a knee on his neck for up to three minutes. The Missouri Attorney General's Office says three medical experts found he died of excited delirium, a conclusion his mother disputes, and in 2021 the Attorney General said there was not enough evidence for murder charges.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by staff (disputed; neglect alleged). The Missouri Attorney General's Office says three medical experts found excited delirium caused the death, while his mother Quinta Sanders's federal lawsuit says jailers used a stun gun through a food tray opening and a deputy used pepper spray, and that inadequate medical care contributed.
Reported by: Missouri Attorney General's Office (outside investigators); Mississippi County Coroner (medical examiner or coroner); Quinta Sanders's federal civil suit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His mother, Quinta Sanders, filed a federal civil suit against former sheriff Cory Hutcheson, deputies, jailers, and the Charleston Department of Public Safety, and no settlement or award amount has been reported.