KALAMAZOO, MI

— The Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to approve two settlements stemming from recent lawsuits, one of which totaled $1.75 million.

The Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to approve two large settlements in lawsuits against the county.

The $1.75 million settlement resolves a wrongful death dispute with the estate of

, who died Nov. 8, 2011 after collapsing at the Kalamazoo County Jail on Nov. 2 while suffering from withdrawals from heroin.

The county has spent nearly $150,000 in legal fees, which represents the amount it must reach before insurance covers the remainder of the settlement, according to Thom Canny, corporate counsel for the county.

Canny estimated the county will pay less than an added $20,000 to reach $150,000. He referred additional questions to the settlement.

There was no discussion amongst board members before or after approving the settlement.

Elizabeth Keller, Armstead's mother, claimed in the lawsuit that nurses at the jail didn't give adequate medical care to her daughter. Keller was originally seeking more than $75,000 in compensatory damages.

The lawsuit states that in the days leading up to her cardiac arrest, Armstead and her cellmates submitted numerous kites, or written requests, for medical treatment for Armstead, who was suffering from withdrawals from heroin.

According to the lawsuit, on Nov. 2, Armstead began shaking and convulsing, eventually collapsing. The lawsuit states that when Michael Bierma, a registered nurse at the jail, found Armstead on the floor, he left her there to consult jail protocol. When he returned, Armstead had no blood pressure, the lawsuit states.

When she went into cardiac arrest, she was taken to Bronson Methodist Hospital where she was placed on life support, according to the lawsuit. Armstead was unplugged from life support Nov. 8 and died.

Bierema, along with Conrad Bitely and Ron Tharge, the two other nurses named in the lawsuit, maintained they followed protocol following the incident.

The other settlement stems from a wrongful death lawsuit pertaining to the March 5, 2012, suicide of inmate Derrick Burroughs, according to documents filed in the U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

Last week,

to settle with Burroughs' estate.

An internal probe conducted at the time concluded that deputy Jeffrey Miller, who was initially terminated following the incident, but was reinstated Aug. 10, failed to properly complete rounds to check on inmates at the beginning of his shift at 12 a.m. March 5 and then every 30 minutes thereafter. It also found that Miller failed to have Burroughs remove a sheet and towel from the bars of his cell that blocked the deputy’s view the morning Burroughs died.

Burroughs, according to documents obtained last year by MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, died between 12:06 a.m. and 1:36 a.m. March 5. Documents showed he tied a bed sheet to a ventilation grate in his one-person cell then wrapped the sheet around his neck.

Among the allegations contained in the lawsuit are that Burroughs’ constitutional rights were violated and that the defendants named in the lawsuit conspired to violate those rights.

In other news, the board:

Voted unanimously to contribute $16,360 to the salary of two sheriff's deputies for the secondary road patrol to maintain the positions next year. The funds will be combined with $186,930 from a Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning grant to fund the officers total combined salary of $203,290.

Alex Mitchell covers county government and taxes for The Kalamazoo Gazette and MLive Media Group. Email him at amitche5@mlive.com. Follow him on Twitter.