$900,000 settlement – wrongful death shooting

Sometimes the punishment does not fit the crime.  No place in America allows the death penalty for stealing a car.

Our client was the mother of a young man who had stolen a car.  When he was spotted by the police, the young man took off and fled in a high speed chase.  After crashing the stolen car, he took off on foot attempting to flee.  A police officer fired several shots at the young man from inside his police car.  The young man was unarmed and was scaling a chain link fence with his back to the officer when he was fatally shot.  A federal civil rights case was brought by John Leighton on behalf of the man’s surviving mother against the police department for the young man’s wrongful death. The officer who killed this man had previously shot at least seven people, and was considered the officer with the most kills on the Miami Police force.  Leighton proved that the man was unarmed, was running away from the police, was not a threat of deadly harm to anyone, and that the police officer violated policies when he fired from his police car. The case was settled for $900,000.

 

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