Ex-inmate files $1.5M suit against Cocke County

 Posted on March 30, 2023 in Uncategorized

A lawsuit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District court in Greeneville by a former inmate at Cocke County Jail, alleging he suffered serious injuries as a result of being beaten by other inmates at the jail in March 2022.

The suit is seeking at least $500,000 in compensatory damages and at least $1 million in punitive damages.

The suit filed by attorney Lance K. Baker of The Baker Law Firm in Knoxville on behalf of Steven J. Laws names Cocke County, former Cocke County Sheriff Armando Fontes and several others as defendants in the civil rights action.