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Ottawa County Faces $40M Civil Rights Judgment | Joplin News
Ottawa County faces a $40 million civil rights judgment stemming from the 2015 death of Terral Ellis, whose pleas for help were ignored by a nurse while he was jailed. A jury awarded his family $33 million, ballooning with interest. To cover it, county officials are pushing a one-percent sales tax increase on the ballot—set to expire in 2042—but its success hinges on voter approval. District Attorney Doug Pewitt warns failure could mean “a very ugly Christmas” for taxpayers, as unpaid judgments risk impacting landowners and triggering steep tax hikes. The debt is already on the books, and…
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