Suit in Botched Tennessee Standoff Settled

Officials have approved the settlement of a lawsuit filed by a Sullivan County family whose trailer was destroyed during a standoff with law enforcement.

The Bristol Herald Courier reports that the Tennessee county’s Executive Committee voted unanimously to pay $110,000 to Margaret Spradlin and her daughter, Shirley Spradlin.

The Spradlin family had originally sought $1.5 million.

Police began searching on April 27, 2011 for Margaret Spradlin’s son, Junior Spradlin, who was wanted on a second-degree murder charge for a beating death.

The suspect’s car was found at the trailer, which was destroyed following a daylong standoff involving a bomb squad robot, tear gas grenades and an armored car.

Junior Spradlin was not in the trailer, but he turned himself in days later and was eventually convicted in the beating death.