Mecklenburg sheriff agrees to pay $550,000 to family of teen who committed suicide in jail
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office has agreed to pay $550,000 to the family of a teenager who died by suicide in the county’s now-closed juvenile jail, according to a news release from the attorney representing the family.
Sheriff Garry McFadden’s office also agreed to “implement and maintain policies” to keep people in jail safe, according to the Friday release.
While not admitting any fault, the agency agreed to do the following, the release says:
“Allow a pod supervisor to place potentially suicidal residents on close observation.”
“Require potentially suicidal residents to be observed at least four times per hour on an irregular basis by detention staff.”
“Require training programs for detention staff that include identifying and supervising suicidal residents.”
“Require residents be assessed by qualified medical personnel.”
“Ensure adequate staffing for pods housing suicidal residents.”
That’s just maintaining policies that already existed, said Sarah Mastouri, a sheriff’s office spokesperson.
“While no amount of money will ever make my family whole and bring back my son, we will remain hopeful that no other family will have to suffer the loss of a child to suicide while in jail custody,” Adrianna Blackwell, the teenager’s mother, said in a statement.
In her federal lawsuit, she said detention officers failed to adequately observe her 17-year-old son, even though he had been put on tighter security, then tried to hide supervision violations by filing false reports.
He was placed on suicide alert after being admitted to the county jail, according to the suit. When someone is placed on suicide alert, state law says jailers need to check on them every 10 minutes to ensure their safety. They did not do that, according to the suit.
Video obtained by The Charlotte Observer showed jail staff speeding through supervision rounds before Dwight Weller, a man working in the jail, saw the teenager hanging and jolted back. Weller said during a deposition in the civil case that he retroactively filled out supervision logs because his supervisors told him to, the Observer reported in October.
The teenager had been in Mecklenburg County’s custody for less than a day.
“When the State and County takes a juvenile into its custody, the Constitution and state statutes impose upon it a corresponding duty to assume responsibility for their safety and general well-being,” the family’s attorney, Micheal Littlejohn, said in a statement Friday.
The agreement his office made with the sheriff’s office “is a meaningful step in the right direction, but it’s insufficient to reckon with the losses and trauma endured by those families who have lost loved ones in custody at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center,” he said.
The $550,000 monetary settlement is the largest the sheriff’s office has given for an in-custody death under McFadden, Mastouri confirmed.
A court record signed by Littlejohn and McFadden’s attorney says all parties have agreed to a dismissal.
Last year, McFadden called a news conference and took reporters on an impromptu jail tour in which he described the state’s jail inspection process as unfair. Inspectors often find that local detention officers failed to make timely checks on inmates who died.
And in a special report published earlier this month, former jail staff told The Charlotte Observer that McFadden put them in danger by taking inmates’ side in disputes. McFadden admitted in an undated audio recording obtained by the Observer that he knows little about what happens in the jail, and said that is because his staff does not keep him informed. He called the Observer’s reporting unfair, but said he has not read it, in a story published by Axios Charlotte on Friday.
The sheriff has faced increased scrutiny since his last chief deputy, Kevin Canty, sent the office a scathing resignation letter in November in which he accused McFadden of abusing his power.
Ryan Oehrli covers criminal justice in the Charlotte region for The Charlotte Observer. His work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The Observer maintains full editorial control of its journalism.
This story was originally published January 24, 2025 at 2:28 PM.