HOT SPRINGS — An attorney for Garland County says officials are trying to resolve differences over a federal court verdict regarding an inmate who suffered brain damage while he was in jail.
A jury ruled against nurse Tommy Harmon and Sgt. Donald Ansley and awarded $5 million in compensatory damages to Steven McFarland’s family.
Garland County Attorney Ralph Ohm said he met Friday with an Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals official, but nothing was settled.
McFarland was arrested Feb. 13, 2007, for driving while intoxicated. Tests showed he hadn’t been drinking, but he had ingested several drugs.
Court records show Harmon examined McFarland and concluded he was “sleeping off alcohol” and didn’t need medical care. Harmon wasn’t told that McFarland had taken drugs.