Seattle Settles Charleena Lyles Wrongful Death Lawsuit For $3.5M

Seattle WA

30 November, 2021

7:37 PM

Description

SEATTLE — Seattle has agreed to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of Charleena Lyles, a Black mother of four who was shot and killed by Seattle police four years ago. Lyles, 30, called 911 to report a burglary on June 18, 2017. Officers Jason Anderson and Steve McNew responded to her home and said Lyles moved toward them with a knife before they shot her. Neither officer had a Taser, despite Seattle Police Department policy. In a news conference Tuesday, Karen Koehler, an attorney for Lyles' estate said the officers were aware of her history of mental health crises, including an encounter with police earlier that month, and noted her address was flagged with a warning. Despite the warning, Koehler said the officers approached the home without an adequate plan or less-lethal weapons. "It's been a brutal, brutal case in many ways," Koehler said. "The law is not friendly to people who are having mental health crises." The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Lyles' children, was originally filed in 2017 and was dismissed in 2019 before an appellate court allowed the case to move forward earlier this year. The trial was scheduled to begin in February 2022. After a 13-hour meeting Monday, Koehler said the city agreed to pay the settlement and resolve the lawsuit before the civil trial. A separate inquest into Lyles' killing will take place separately, but dates have yet to be set for the hearings.