New Jersey Turnpike Authority commissioners agreed to settle a federal lawsuit brought by the family of a Long Island man who died in State Police custody.
New Jersey Turnpike Authority commissioners approved a $480,000 settlement of a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by the family of a Patchogue, N.Y., man who died after a Dec. 2008 traffic stop on the Turnpike in Bergen County.
Commissioners approved the settlement with the family of Robert Tuite Jr. on Tuesday, which had filed a wrongful death lawsuit in December 2010 against the State Police and three troopers involved in the traffic stop.
An out-of-court settlement of the case was recommended by outside counsel, said Bruce A. Harris, Turnpike Authority general counsel.
The suit stems from a Dec. 28, 2008, incident in which a state trooper found Tuite asleep in his vehicle, which was stopped in the left lane of the turnpike in Teaneck about 11 p.m. After a trooper woke him up and had him move his car off the roadway, backup troopers arrived and gave Tuite a sobriety test, according to the Attorney General's office.
When troopers tried to arrest Tuite for driving while intoxicated, he resisted, officials said. Tuite, who was described in court papers as 6-foot-2-inches and weighing over 250 pounds, had to be restrained by three troopers and put in handcuffs on the shoulder of the highway, according to authorities and court papers.
Tuite then experienced an unknown medical problem, and troopers administered first aid before he was taken to Englewood Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.
The death was investigated by the attorney general's shooting response team, which routinely investigates deaths involving the State Police.
Tuite's family contended in the suit that troopers used excessive force and failed to provide medical aid immediately when he apparently stopped breathing after he was handcuffed.
Court papers said an autopsy listed his cause of death as due to "cardiorespiratory arrest following physical restraint and struggle" while under the influence of alcohol and a prescription muscle relaxer.
Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.