Couple sues sheriff's office

A former Zumbrota resident currently serving prison time and a Hastings woman are seeking a total of $1.25 million in a personal injury lawsuit filed against the Goodhue County Sheriff's Office.

In the suit, filed Oct. 5 in Goodhue County District Court, Kevin Wayne Larson alleges the sheriff's jail staff refused to provide him with medication and ignored his calls for help in a 2007 incident.

The suit claims Larson was injured after falling at "an establishment" in Zumbrota. He was transported to St. Marys Hospital in Rochester with severe head injuries, reportedly spending a week in intensive care, the complaint states.

After he was released from the hospital, a Zumbrota police officer - reportedly joined by a sheriff's deputy - came to arrest Larson for allegedly drinking alcohol illegally the night of his injury. The complaint states Larson's fiancée, Michele L. Masera, answered the door and was knocked down by the deputy as he pushed through the door.

The complaint states Masera was four months pregnant at the time.

Masera claims the fall led to "irreversible damage" that still causes her pain. Larson, listed as an inmate at Minnesota Correctional Facility-Willow River, claims he still suffers from emotional distress caused by the incident.

Larson, who is serving time on a first-degree DWI conviction, and Masera are representing themselves in the case. Masera is seeking $750,000 in damages; Larson is seeking $500,000.

The attorney representing the sheriff's office called the suit "frivolous."

Jason Hiveley, a lawyer with the Bloomington, Minn.-based Iverson Reuvers law firm, said claims made in the complaint are "pretty outlandish."

"There's not truth to these claims," Hiveley said. "It's an attempt to try to get some money from the county."

No phone number could be found to reach Masera.

Hiveley said he expects to file a motion for dismissal in the next three months.

Tags: goodhue county sheriff, lawsuit, news