Police, BLM Settle Excessive Force Case; No Wrongdoing Admitted

Fredericksburg VA

07 December, 2021

4:35 PM

Description

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — Nine protestors settled out of court to end a federal civil lawsuit against police in Fredericksburg and Stafford. The protestors claimed their civil rights were violated during demonstrations after the death of George Floyd in 2020. The protestors will receive an undisclosed sum of money for settling out of court, the City of Fredericksburg announced on Tuesday. None of the defendants with Stafford County or the City of Fredericksburg acknowledged any wrongdoing. City officials also said the police department and Stafford deputies did not use any local taxpayer dollars for the settlement. The sum was paid by the city's insurer, Virginia Risk Sharing Association, and the Stafford County Sheriff's and deputies' insurer, Division of Risk Management. Though protestors claimed that excessive force was used against them during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, Fredericksburg Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw said on Tuesday that she was proud of the city's law enforcement. "The city is proud of the men and women of its police department, and is grateful to them for their steady service through a very trying summer," Mayor Greenlaw said. "Our police officers met the highest standards of professionalism, protecting both those who participated in the many protests of that summer and protecting the general public." The protestors' descriptions of police action during demonstrations painted a different story. In their initial lawsuit, which was filed by Tara Murray and the Relman Colfax law firm, the plaintiffs claimed that on three different occasions, law enforcement used "harmful chemical agents and military-style force to disperse demonstrations." Read more: Excessive Force Used Against BLM in Fredericksburg: Lawsuit Says "Plaintiffs were peacefully speaking out against racial injustice and police brutality," said Soohyun Choi, attorney at Relman Colfax, when the lawsuit was first filed. "Yet, at the direction of local government, police officers indiscriminately and repeatedly attacked plaintiffs with dangerous chemical weapons, to stop them from voicing their criticisms of the police." Still, Mayor Greenlaw claimed the city's police officers did nothing wrong, and settling the lawsuit was a logical financial move. "The city's insurer made a sound business decision in resolving this lawsuit on terms that remove the burden of litigation from city employees, and permit them to return their full attention to their public duties and to their families and personal pursuits," Mayor Greenlaw said. "We are very pleased to have this chapter closed."