Catskill Family Files Wrongful Death Suit Against Village

Paperwork has been filed by the family of a Catskill man who died after bursting into flames while in police custody.

In October of 2021, the Associated Press reported that 29-year-old Catskill resident, Jason Jones, was in serious condition in a burn unit at a Syracuse hospital after an altercation with Village of Catskill police. Chief Dave Darling of the Village of Catskill Police Department told the Times Union of Albany that Jones had been subdued by taser after he had "doused himself with hand sanitizer."

As a result, Jason Jones became completely engulfed in flames. Jones later succumbed to his injuries and passed away on December 15th, 2021.

Now, family members are working on a Wrongful Death lawsuit against the Village of Catskill.

News 10 Albany is reporting that Jones' brother filed a notice back on January 24th that claims "the village showed reckless disregard" for Justin Jones' welfare, which caused his death." Jones' family is seeking $20 million in damages.

Greene County DA Joseph Stanzione released the following statement to CBS 6 in Albany after news broke of the lawsuit:

It is no surprise that the family is filing a Notice of Claim against the Village of Catskill. This is not unusual in a case in which an individual dies, and it is alleged that the death is due to an officer involved incident. The filing of the “Notice of Claim” and any future civil suit will have no bearing on the investigation that was initially commenced by my office and is now in the good hands of the Attorney General’s office. All determinations made by Attorney General James will be based on the thorough and non-biased investigation conducted by her office (She will not be influenced by the filing of civil documents

Shocking and disturbing images of Jones' altercation with the Catskill Police Department were released in December as part of an ongoing investigation into Jones' death.

The Jones family attorney says his client spent 48 days in an intensive care unit before he died from his injuries.