Joliet City Council has not reached consensus on settlement in Eric Lurry death lawsuit

The Joliet City Council has not reached a consensus on whether they should pursue a settlement in a federal lawsuit case over the 2020 in-custody death of a Joliet man, according to the city’s attorneys.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings gave both parties in the 2020 lawsuit case over the death of Eric Lurry, 37, until Wednesday to decide whether they should pursue a settlement or a trial.

The deadline follows a May 7 ruling by Cummings that denied a motion from the city’s attorneys to dismiss the lawsuit on legal grounds and the evidence.

“The bottom line is that the decision whether to consider settlement is up to the Joliet City Council. At this time, there is no consensus among the council members,” according to a May 15 motion from David Matheus, one of the city’s attorneys.

Cummings granted the motion on Monday.

Matheus’ motion said the city council has “numerous other matters on the agenda” at Tuesday’s meeting and there was no “realistic possibility of getting a decision” from the council by Wednesday.

Matheus requested a deadline extension to June 5 to allow the city council to “continue discussing their next steps” with the city’s legal department.

Matheus said the city’s attorneys in the Lurry lawsuit case plan to appear at a June 3 council meeting to “seek direction on whether to seek a settlement conference,” and whether that should be done through a magistrate judge or private mediator.

But the June 3 date would also allow the parties to consult their experts on their availability if they decide to go to trial rather than settle the case, according to Matheus’ motion.

The trial would occur in January or February 2026, according to the motion.

The lawsuit over Lurry’s death was filed by Nicole Lurry, his widow.

Officers involved in a narcotics investigation had arrested Eric Lurry in January 2020. He put bags of drugs in his mouth before he was taken into a squad vehicle and suffered from an overdose when he was taken to the police station.

Squad vehicle video showed Joliet Police Sgt. Doug May slapping a handcuffed Lurry in the face and saying “Wake up, [expletive]!”

The video showed May pinching Lurry’s nose shut in an effort to get him to open his mouth and Joliet Police Officer Andrew McCue using a baton to probe Lurry’s mouth for the bags of drugs.

Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow cleared the officers of wrongdoing after the coroner’s office ruled Lurry died from a fatal drug overdose.

But Nicole Lurry’s attorneys contend officers squandered multiple opportunities to provide prompt medical care for Lurry and they caused his death by subjecting him to excessive force.