MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota’s most populous county will pay $3.4 million to settle a lawsuit that corrections workers allegedly ignored the pleas of a 41-year-old man who died of a perforated intestine after spending days begging to be taken to a hospital.

The lawsuit was filed in January by the family of Lucas Bellamy, son of St. Paul Penumbra Theater founder Louis Bellamy. Lucas Bellamy died while in custody at the Hennepin County Jail in Minneapolis in 2022.

The settlement is believed to be among the largest ever made in connection with a prison death in Minnesota, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Monday.

The Bellamy family declined to comment. His attorney, Jeff Storms, said the settlement is important “in terms of reflecting accountability for the egregious loss of Lucas’s life.”

Hennepin County spokeswoman Carolyn Marinan said Lucas Bellamy’s death was a “tragedy.”

“Our deepest condolences go out to his family and everyone affected by his death,” Marinan said. “While this litigation has reached a resolution, we remain committed to serving all people in our care with dignity and respect.”

Lucas Bellamy was arrested in July 2022 on charges of fleeing police in a suspected stolen vehicle and possession of brass knuckles. During his booking into jail, he said he had ingested a bag of drugs and was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, according to the lawsuit. He was sent back to jail with instructions to return to the hospital if his symptoms worsened.

The lawsuit alleges that Bellamy’s death was among 15 deaths at the jail since 2015, including eight over the previous two years.

The announced agreement came days after the state ordered the county to reduce its jail population by 239 inmates over concerns about staffing shortages and inadequate care.

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