SALT LAKE CITY — Settlement talks are under way in a lawsuit alleging the abuse of inmates for the entertainment of officers at the Daggett County Jail, FOX 13 has learned.
Attorneys for the Utah Department of Corrections and the ACLU of Utah asked a federal judge to delay upcoming deadlines in the lawsuit.
“Good cause for this extension exists here because State Defendant and Plaintiffs through undersigned counsel, continue to engage in good faith discussions to attempt to resolve this matter through settlement discussions,” assistant Utah Attorney General Darin Goff wrote in the filing obtained by FOX 13.
The ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of Joshua Asay, who is among four men alleging an inmate abuse scandal at the eastern Utah jail. The inmates say they were attacked by police dogs and shocked with Tasers for the entertainment of officers at the jail.
The scandal prompted the Utah Department of Corrections to pull its inmates from being housed at the jail. Then-Sheriff Jerry Jorgensen and various deputies pleaded guilty to misconduct-related charges. The jail itself was ordered closed in 2017 and the property itself is up for sale.
