detention center death

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating two South Carolina jails for possible civil rights violations following a string of deaths in Charleston and Richland Counties.

A federal lawsuit alleges that unsanitary conditions and staff negligence caused the death of a 27-year-old man detained in a South Carolina jail. Police arrested Lason Butler on Jan. 31 on charges of reckless driving, failure to stop for blue lights and driving with a suspended license. The lawsuit filed Wednesday says that he was found dead on Feb. 12 with fresh rat bites and no running water. An autopsy report found that Butler died of dehydration. The lawsuit alleges that jail staff failed to provide "sanitary conditions, appropriate health care, and relief from solitary confinement."