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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — The El Paso County commissioners have voted to pay $56,000 to settle a federal lawsuit by a man shot by a sheriff's deputy with a stun gun.

The commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday for the settlement with 48-year-old Jiles Theron Bennett of Peyton and his wife, Jill. The county also paid about $105,000 in legal fees and other costs.

Bennett sued the deputy and the sheriff's office, claiming that he suffered injuries and emotional distress from the 2007 incident. Deputy Jerome Mercado-Vargas said he used the stun gun after Bennett became agitated during a traffic stop.

Sheriff Terry Maketa defended the deputy, but said the county decided to settle the lawsuit because the deputy is ill. He declined to elaborate.

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