The family of a man who died in Fond du Lac while in police custody two days before Christmas last year has filed a civil suit in federal court alleging his civil rights were violated. According to the complaint the stop was unlawfully extended to conduct a narcotics investigation and alleges paramedics “acted in a non-emergency fashion” when Christopher Cary began to experience a medical emergency in the back seat of a police squad car. The suit says Cary believed he was being targeted by police and that his loss has left a hole in the Cary family that no monetary award can fill. The lawsuit is asking for compensatory damages, punitive damages, court costs and attorney fees. In February, District Attorney Eric Toney announced that an investigation by the Sheboygan Police Department determined that Cary died from a cocaine overdose, that the officers acted appropriately during the traffic stop, and that no charges would be filed against the officers involved. Toney said the investigation indicated that Cary voluntarily ingested the cocaine in an apparent effort to avoid police from detecting it during the traffic stop. An autopsy determined that Cary died from acute cocaine toxicity. Toney said the family doesn’t have all of the facts of the case.
