In what’s supposedly New Jersey’s largest-ever settlement for a police excessive force case, Camden County’s insurance carrier has agreed to pay $10 million to a paralyzed city man who gets round-the-clock nursing home care.

The out-of-court settlement for 28-year-old Xavier Ingram – injured in a 2014 encounter with county metro cops – must be approved by U.S. District Chief Judge Juan Sanchez, who presided over Ingram’s month-long civil case that got declared a mistrial in March due to a hung jury.

This deal riled Camden County officials who are “in complete disagreement,” said spokesman Dan Keashen, explaining “the insurance carrier (is) making a business decision and forcing the hand of Camden County.”

“We will be settling the case with Mr. Ingram, (but) we do not believe this is the right decision,” said Keashen. The county “maintain(s) no wrongdoing took place. It is not liable for any of the actions and

Jan 28 2022

King County pays $2.5M to the family of man killed by deputies after stealing truck

Police Brutality

King County, Washington has agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle a claim by the family of Anthony Chilcott, who was shot and killed by deputies after stealing a hot-rod pickup truck and a pet poodle, according to the family’s attorney.

The November 2019 incident was sharply criticized by investigators and resulted in the termination of one of the officers involved.

In a rare move, the claim filed against the county by Chilcott’s mother and sister, Monica Crotty and Amanda Castro, both now living in Texas, was resolved before a lawsuit was filed and involved a face-to-face meeting with interim Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall, a representative of the civil division of the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the county’s risk manager, according to attorney Tony Russo.

Russo said all three parties made a “sincere apology” to the family and that the sheriff’s office has promised to implement reforms recommended in a critical review of Chilcott’s shooting. The reforms involve limits on the use of plainclothes officers and focus on de-escalation methods and techniques that an internal investigation found were lacking or ignored during the incident that killed Chilcott.

“Your decision to participate in utmost good faith in an early resolution of the family’s claim that culminated in today’s settlement should help all of us turn the page on this unnecessary and tragic loss of life,” Russo wrote in a Thursday email to the county following mediation. “That act of humanity, even more so than the $2.5 million dollar settlement, demonstrated an acceptance of responsibility by leadership of King County and will help the family on the long road to healing.”

Nov 17 2021

Phoenix to pay $5M in lawsuit over man’s death during arrest

Wrongful Death

The 7-2 vote by the City Council ends the lawsuit by the sister of Muhammad Abdul Muhaymin, who was homeless and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia.

“Although they (city officials) didn’t acknowledge any specific kind of wrongdoing, the settlement makes a strong statement — and for that reason, I am happy we could move forward,” said Muhaymin’s sister, Mussallina Muhaymin.

City spokesman Dan Wilson declined to comment on the settlement on behalf of the city and police department. Lawyers representing the city had previously denied the lawsuit’s allegations of excessive force and wrongful death.

Crowd Of Protesters Holding Signs 4614167

Nov 8 2021

The Changing History of Police Brutality in the United States

Read the records of 85,000 cops who were investigated for misconduct

Police Misconduct

At least 85,000 law enforcement officers across the USA have been investigated or disciplined for misconduct over the past decade, an investigation by USA TODAY Network found.

Officers have beaten members of the public, planted evidence and used their badges to harass women. They have lied, stolen, dealt drugs, driven drunk and abused their spouses.

Despite their role as public servants, the men and women who swear an oath to keep communities safe can generally avoid public scrutiny for their misdeeds.

The records of their misconduct are filed away, rarely seen by anyone outside their departments. Police unions and their political allies have worked to put special protections in place ensuring some records are shielded from public view, or even destroyed.

Reporters from USA TODAY, its affiliated newsrooms across the country and the nonprofit Invisible Institute in Chicago spent more than a year creating the biggest collection of police misconduct records.

Obtained from thousands of state agencies, prosecutors, police departments and sheriffs, the records detail at least 200,000 incidents of alleged misconduct, much of it previously unreported. The records obtained include more than 110,000 internal affairs investigations by hundreds of individual departments and more than 30,000 officers who were decertified by 44 state oversight agencies.

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