Struthers reaches settlement with family of jail suicide victim

STRUTHERS

The city has reached a settlement agreement with the family of a man who died after hanging himself in his city jail cell Sept. 10, 2015.

The agreement, approved by Mahoning County Probate Judge Robert Rusu, Jr., requires the city to pay $750,000 to the estate of Peter Bugno.

Struthers Police Capt. Patrick Bundy found Bugno dead about four hours after Bugno had been booked into the municipal jail on a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct while intoxicated. He was 43.

Under the terms of the settlement, the city does not admit wrongdoing in Bugno’s death. The settlement includes $300,000 to be distributed to Bugno’s daughter Zoe Miller, $96,063.50 to his sister Jennifer Leffler and $100,000 to his sister Amber Bugno, probate court documents state.

The city’s insurance deductible is $5,000, according to city Auditor Christina Bohl.

“We reached a mutually satisfactory agreement,” said Atty. David Engler, who represented Bugno’s estate.

Struthers Law Director Atty. Dominic Leone discussed the settlement with city council Wednesday night.

“It’s very expensive to defend these lawsuits,” Leone said. “Even if we are successful, there’s years worth of litigation.”

A city internal investigation found Bundy had violated procedure before Bugno’s death because Bundy had failed to conduct “direct in-person surveillance” of inmates at least once every hour. The investigation also determined that Capt. Michael Leonard had inaccurately filled out a required inmate screening form, which includes questions about mental health.

Read more about the case in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.