Dona Ana County officials felt the backlash after last week's announcement that the county reached a $15.5-millionsettlement with a former inmate.

There was extra security for the first county commissioners' meeting since the announcement after commissioners and county staff received serious threats. 

As KFOX14 has reported, Stephen Slevin sued the county for mental injuries suffered as a result of spending the better part of 18 months in solitary confinement at the Dona Ana Detention Center after he was arrested on suspicion of DUI in 2005. 

Shocking before-and-after pictures of Slevin, who had a history of depression, triggered the public outcry. Slevin emerged from solitary confinement almost unrecognizable with a long beard, long hair and complained of bed sores and fungal infections.

The settlement announcement reignited anger over the issue.

"It triggered a lot of backlash from the community; we knew it would. We welcome public opinion. I don't usually welcome it at 11 o'clock at night with a string of obscenities and racial slurs, but generally we welcome feedback from people. We knew there would be a lot of anger from the community," said Karen Perez, Chair Commissioner. 

Perez said some of the anger is over the large amount of the award, some is over people's perception of what did or didn't happen to Slevin and some of the anger is directed at employees' jobs.


"It's not the way to solve it; what is accountability? Everyone wants someone's head on a platter, they want someone fired;that isn't going to solve the problem," said Perez.

But that hasn't stopped threatening emails, letters and phone calls to county leaders and staff.

"The personal backlash is very hurtful, very painful and very inappropriate," said Perez.

Beyond that the volatile response prompted extra security at the commissioners meeting Tuesday and extra concern.

"Based on the level of anger we are getting and based on the level of comments that all of us have received, we were taking care. My family's worried; my children are upset," said Perez.

The announcement of the settlement brings up painfulwounds, but Perez said that doesn't change the work the county's been doing ever since the case came to light in 2007.

"Our detention center director has worked almost seven years to get the programs in place that we have to spearhead the crisis triage center with a real concern for detainees. Removing him from his position, what does that accomplish? Removing other people in the county who are expert and concerned and have all that institutional knowledge to really create a solution, what does that solve? So no, heads are not going to roll," said Perez.

Moving forward and learning lessons from Slevin's case is the county's focus.

Perez said the county continues to learn from the case and has made significant changes over the past seven years to improve the detention center and its handling of the mentally ill.

"We are going to have, we do have, a better institution, a better detention center, a better facility," said Perez.

She said next week when the county sits down to work on their budget they will decide what will be impacted by the $9-millionloss to their reserves. 

Slevin's attorney was not available for comment Tuesday.

None of the current commissioners were in office during the 18 months Slevin was in custody. Perez took office in January of 2007 and Slevin's ordeal came to light in June of 2007.