Judge upholds $22 million award to jailed man

Stephen Slevin: Before and After

A federal judge in Santa Fe has upheld a $22 million jury award to a man who was kept in solitary confinement for two years and forced to pull his own tooth after being arrested for drunken driving in Dona Ana County. 

U.S. District Martha Vazquez on Friday denied the county's request for a new trial on the damages awarded to Stephen Slevin, of Virginia Beach, Va., earlier this year, saying it was justified by the evidence.

 According to the suit, Slevin was in the Dona Ana County jail for 22 months but was never convicted. 

Judge upholds $22 million award to jailed man