Tyree
Tyree, a man who had mental illness, was held at a Santa Clara County jail. A sheriff's investigation found that three deputies entered his cell on the night he died, and witnesses heard him screaming for them to stop. The county medical examiner found that blunt force trauma ruptured his spleen and liver, and that he could not have caused those injuries himself, and classified his death as a homicide. The county paid $3.6 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by his family. The death led to reviews and reforms of the jail's use-of-force practices.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by staff. The county medical examiner ruled the death a homicide from blunt force trauma that ruptured his spleen and liver, and the sheriff's investigation found that three deputies entered his cell that night.
Reported by: county medical examiner; Sheriff's Office investigation (the agency that held him); his family's wrongful death lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His family sued Santa Clara County in a wrongful death lawsuit and the county settled for $3.6 million.