Former Nurse Charged 7 Years After Death of Hardel Sherrell at Beltrami County Jail

ST. PAUL (KVRR/FOX9) — Former Beltrami County jail nurse Michelle Skroch is charged with second-degree manslaughter and criminal neglect, seven years after Hardel Sherrell died while in custody.

The criminal complaint, filed by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Friday, alleges Skroch failed to properly care for Sherrell and that her negligent mistreatment resulted in his death.

The complaint says she did not take his vitals for two days after he returned from the E-R.

She also did not check on Sherrell for over 2 hours after coming on shift, even though he had been face-down on his cell’s floor for over 5 hours.

Jail staff believed he was faking his symptoms.

He was pronounced dead in his cell on September 2, 2018.

“It’s been long coming you know but it give me hope that people in the future will be held accountable and that this kind of thing won’t just be brushed under the rug and families forgotten about,” said Sherrell’s mother, Del Shea Perry.

In 2023, Beltrami County and MEND were ordered to pay $2.6 million to Sherrell’s family in a federal lawsuit.

Skroch’s nursing license was revoked the same year.