Lake County Indiana Jail Settlement

PLEASE NOTE: The claims filing period is now over.

The Court has preliminarily approved a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit brought against Roy Dominguez, individually and in his official capacity as sheriff of Lake County, Indiana, Caren Jones, individually and in her official capacity as former warden of Lake County Jail, Benny Freeman, individually and in his official capacity as warden of Lake County Jail, and unknown Lake County Jail Supervisors. As part of the proposed settlement, defendants are agreeing to pay a total of $7.2 million to cover payments to class members, as well as the attorneys’ fees and costs advanced by the attorneys, and the costs for a claims administrator to handle the settlement.

Your legal rights might be affected if you are a member of the following class:

All persons confined in the Jail from May 13, 2006 to February 1, 2012 (the “class period”) and who were confined in a holding cell for a period of twenty-four (24) hours or longer.

The Court has appointed Loevy & Loevy, located at 312 N. May Street in Chicago, Illinois, as class counsel in this case. The firm has represented the class through all phases of this case, and will continue to represent the class in the approval and administration of the settlement and any appeals.

A hearing on the final approval of the settlement and for approval of plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees and expenses and compensation to the plaintiffs (the “fairness hearing”) has been scheduled by the Court for December 14, 2012, at 9:30 a.m., before United States District Judge Philip P. Simon. The hearing will be held at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, 5400 Federal Plaza, Hammond, IN 46320.

Below is a brief summary of your rights and options and any applicable deadlines. Additional information regarding the options is available in the notice and further below.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

WHAT IT MEANS

DEADLINE

Submit a claim form

This is the only way to be eligible for payment from the settlement.

December 3, 2012

Exclude yourself

(“opt out”)

Get no payment. This is the only option that allows you to be a part of any other lawsuit about same the claims in this case.

December 3, 2012

Object

Remain a class member by submitting a claim form, but write to the court about why you do not agree with the settlement.

December 3, 2012

Go to the Court hearing

The Court will decide whether to approve the settlement. You can request to speak at the hearing.

December 14, 2012

Do Nothing

You will get no payment, and will give up the right to sue defendants for the same claims in this case.

N/A

SUBMIT A CLAIM FORM

The deadline to file a claim was December 3, 2012. A claim form is available for download here or you may request one by calling 800-332-6198. You must mail it in your own envelope to Lake County Jail Class Action, Claims Administrator, c/o A.B. Data, Ltd., PO Box 170500, Milwaukee, WI 53217. Please maintain any proof of mailing, such as a receipt from the post office, to show that you timely submitted your claim form.

EXCLUDE YOURSELF OR “OPT OUT”

If you intend to sue the defendants on your own about the claims released by this settlement, then you must exclude yourself to preserve your claims. However, by remaining in this class action you are not giving up your right to sue defendants for claims other than those covered by this settlement. You also do not give up your rights, if any, to sue defendants for any matter that happened outside the class period (May 13, 2006 to February 1, 2012). Detailed instructions regarding how to exclude yourself from the settlement are included in the notice.

If you have a pending lawsuit regarding the Lake County Jail, you should speak to your lawyer in that case immediately.

OBJECT

In order to object, you must send a letter that includes all of the following:

Case name (Flood, et al. v. Dominguez, et al.) and number (2:08-CV-153); and
A statement of the specific legal and/or factual reasons why you are objecting.

You must send the letter to the Clerk of the Court for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, 5400 Federal Plaza, Suite 2300, Hammond, IN, 46320, with a copy to the settlement administrator at Lake County Jail Class Action, c/o A.B. Data, Ltd., PO Box 170500, Milwaukee, WI 53217.

If you wish to object in person at the Court hearing on December 14, 2012, you must also include the following with your objection letter:

A statement that you intend to appear at the final approval hearing;
A list of witnesses you may call at the hearing;
A description of any evidence you may offer at the hearing, including photocopies of the evidence; and
If you intend to appear through a lawyer, the name, address, and telephone number of that lawyer.

GO TO THE COURT HEARING

On December 14, 2012, at 9:30 a.m., the Court will hold a “fairness hearing” to decide whether to approve the settlement and petitions for attorneys’ fees, costs, and incentives. Everyone has the right to observe this hearing. The hearing will be before Judge Philip P. Simon at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, 5400 Federal Plaza, Hammond, IN 46320.

You do not have to come to the hearing. If you want to speak at the hearing, you must request to do so when you file an objection. Incarcerated people do not have a right to be brought from a jail or prison to the hearing.

DO NOTHING

If you do nothing, you will get no payment, and will give up the right to sue defendants for the same claims in this case.