BRAINERD — The wife of a well-known Brainerd lakes area camp director who died by suicide in jail filed a wrongful death lawsuit Thursday, Oct. 9, against Crow Wing County and one of its correctional officers.
The February 2024 death of 57-year-old Robert “Bob” Slaybaugh occurred within an hour of him being placed in a jail cell following his arrest for driving while intoxicated. The suit states Correctional Officer Brandon Anderson placed him in a general population cell stocked with a sheet and a bunk previously identified by state officials as a suicide hazard, despite an “overwhelming combination of risk factors.”
Slaybaugh registered a 0.282 blood alcohol concentration and disclosed to staff that he suffered from anxiety, sleeping disorders, a prior suicide attempt within the last six months and past hospitalization for mental health problems, according to the complaint. He also answered “yes” to multiple questions on the jail’s mental health screening that, by the jail’s own policy, required he be referred for an immediate mental health evaluation.
“His death was the predictable result of Defendants’ deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs and of the County’s longstanding policies and customs of ignoring substantial suicide risks in its Jail,” the suit states.
Reached Friday, Crow Wing County Sheriff Eric Klang declined to comment on the lawsuit. Klang did, however, confirm the bunks identified as suicide hazards in the jail have been replaced since the time of the incident. The DOC provided notice to the county in October 2024 that the agency considered the project to be complete, according to Crow Wing County Administrator Deborah Erickson.
‘A clear duty’
Slaybaugh’s wife of more than 32 years, Susan Slaybaugh, brought the legal action as the appointed trustee for his next of kin. She is represented by Jeffrey S. Storms and Ryan O. Vettleson of Storms Dworak law firm in Minneapolis.
Slaybaugh was also arrested and jailed for DWI in October 2022,whenhis preliminary breath test registered 0.22. In February 2024, Slaybaugh told Anderson about this previous offense and that his mental health had been suffering, including hospitalization and a recent suicide attempt. His blood alcohol concentration was over three-and-a-half times the legal driving limit and nearly twice the statutory threshold that elevates a DWI offense to an aggravated level. The lawsuit notes this concentration represents grave medical risk.
“A person at this level of intoxication is highly vulnerable to self-harm, accidental injury, or sudden medical collapse,” the suit states. “In the jail context, it was a red flag that Robert needed heightened supervision, medical evaluation, and suicide precautions, rather than routine handling.”
After Slaybaugh completed the mental health questionnaire, Anderson made a referral for an evaluation. However, the lawsuit states that Anderson knew neither a medical provider nor a mental health professional was on site until at least the next morning.
The circumstances of Slaybaugh’s extreme intoxication and his substantial suicide risk “placed a clear duty on C.O. Anderson to ensure heightened supervision and protective measures rather than treating him as an ordinary detainee,” according to the complaint.
Hazardous bunks
The cell in which Slaybaugh was placed included a bunk with several ligature points, which provided opportunities to hang oneself. Jail officials were aware of this and were issued a correction action plan by the Minnesota Department of Corrections after a November 2021 suicide. The DOC described six 1-inch holes in the bunks, a 2-inch gap from the wall and the ladder to the top bunk, all of which created ligature points.
“Based on the number of attempts in a short time span, the bunks at the facility are deemed a safety hazard and an unsafe condition for inmates with mental health concerns,” a DOC finding stated.
The correction action plan required Crow Wing County to document work orders or requests for budget resources to mitigate the problem. The complaint states that between 2017 and 2022, 13 inmates attempted suicide at the jail.
At the time of Slaybaugh’s death, jail officials had not made a reasonable effort to mitigate these risks, according to the lawsuit. The plaintiff points to a 2022 email exchange between jail employees as representative of an indifferent attitude toward suicide. A suggestion of obtaining noise reducing sound tiles to help reduce suicide was met with jokes about suggested purchases of black lights, black light posters and lava lamps by Lt. Troy Schilling, who became jail administrator one month before Slaybaugh’s death.
Rights violations
The lawsuit seeks financial compensation for Slaybaugh’s heirs based on two violations of hisconstitutional rights and his wrongful death under Minnesota law.
It states Anderson violated his rights by acting with “deliberate indifference” to Slaybaugh’s medical needs resulting in his death. Further, Crow Wing County violated his rights, according to the suit, by failing to abate hazards presented by the bunks and tolerating deliberate indifference to the rights of detainees.
For these two constitutional claims and the wrongful death claim, the lawsuit seeks $75,000 each in damages. The plaintiff is seeking a jury trial on the matter in U.S. District Court. Attorneys for the defendants will have the opportunity to file an answer to the suit.
Slaybaugh’s background
Slaybaugh spent 36 years as the camp director for Confidence Learning Center in East Gull Lake. The nonprofit organization “specializes in outdoor education and experiences for people with developmental and cognitive disabilities — along with the deaf and hard of hearing communities,” its website states. He was also a founder of the Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza and served as a committee member for Fishing Has No Boundaries and various other charitable organizations.
In August, the Confidence Learning Center commemorated Slaybaugh’s memory ahead of the Fishing Has No Boundaries event with a new, sensory-safe place for campers and their families called the “Bobber Stop.”
