Nyack Family To Sue Clarkstown, Rockland Over Fatal Standoff: Report

NYACK, NY — The family of Sean Harris, who died during a standoff May 30 with Clarkstown police, has filed a notice of intent to sue the town and the county, The Journal News reported.

In June, two social workers from a county-contracted agency were visiting at the request of the 19-year-old's mother when Harris came into the kitchen. According to the police report, a social worker stepped outside and called police, saying Harris had a baseball bat and was threatening to kill his mother. Clarkstown police arrived, adding a negotiation team and then a crisis response team as time went on and Harris refused to come outside. When police broke in, the teen was found dead in the bathroom surrounded by pill bottles, according to the police report.

The wrongful death Notice of Claim alleges intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, deliberate indifference to medical care and denial of medical care, according to TJN. Harris's family said he was not violent and the social workers didn't stay through the whole interaction between the teen and his mother.

Read the full article here on lohud.com.

Harris's family described his life and their shock in an interview in June with Nancy Cutler of The Journal News. Read that interview on lohud.com.