By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Feb 3, updated – A 27 year old man, Eugene Castelle, reportedly related to the Luchese family on Staten Island died while imprisoned on Riker's Island on November 8, 2016. There are photos which his lawyer calls bad, and there is as Inner City Press first and exclusively reported on February 2 a missing video.
There was a demand for $2 million, by the plaintiff, it emerged on February 2, but the demand may go higher if and when the missing video is found or produced. Discovery document on Patreon here.
Inner City Press' reporting has gleaned stories of Eugene Castelle seeking detox but being provided with dubious methadone and convulsing. It is said that other prisoners dragged him down to the guards' Bubble for help, but were rebuffed. He died, and now the video is missing.
On February 2, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn held a discovery conference. Inner City Press alone covered it.
Judge Netburn expressed skepticism that the City does not have deposition transcripts computerized, and urged that an inquiry into how the video of the time of death was altered.
Inner City Press now askes, Inquiry by whom? This is more than a private lawsuit - it is a scandal.
The defense lawyer blurted out that there had been a $2 million demand.
The plaintiff's lawyer replied that was the demand BEFORE he learned how bad things were. He said he could not advise settlement until seeing the video.
Judge Netburn offered a settlement conference in March, or if not taken soon, in May.
The case, which Inner City Press will be covering going forward, is Tirado v. City of New York et al., 19-cv-10377 (Netburn)
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