Maryland Settles Inmate's Excessive Force Lawsuit

BALTIMORE (AP) -- The state of Maryland has settled a lawsuit alleging correctional officers brutalized an inmate who insulted a nurse at the maximum-security North Branch Correctional Institution near Cumberland in 2012.

The attorney general's office said Tuesday the settlement with inmate Wayne Boone is far below the $10,000 level that would require Board of Public Works approval. Spokesman David Nitkin wouldn't disclose the exact amount.

Boone's lawyer declined to comment.

Boone filed suit in U.S. District Court in Baltimore in 2013. He contended the officers slammed him to the floor and kicked him before handcuffing him. He said an officer then poked him in the eye with a pepper-spray dispenser before spraying him in the face.

The officers had denied using excessive force and denied using chemical agents after Boone was handcuffed.