George Floyd's family receives $27 million settlement from Minneapolis over his death

By Jonathan Allen

A "justice for George" sign is displayed while people demonstrate as jury selection begins in Minneapolis for the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former policeman accused of killing George Floyd, a Black man, during a march in Portland, Oregon, U.S. March 8, 2021. REUTERS/Maranie Staab

(Reuters) - The city of Minneapolis on Friday agreed to pay $27 million to settle a lawsuit by the family of George Floyd over his death in police custody, a case that stirred national protests over racial injustice and police brutality.

Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, died in May as Derek Chauvin, a white Minneapolis police officer, kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes. Floyd's dying pleas for help were captured on widely viewed bystander video, sparking one of the largest protest movements ever seen in the United States.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for the Floyd family, said the agreement was the largest pre-trial settlement of a wrongful death lawsuit in U.S. history.

The size signifies that a Black person's death at the hands of police "will no longer be written off as trivial, unimportant or unworthy of consequences," Crump said at a news conference where he was joined by Floyd's relatives, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and other officials.

Floyd's family was "pleased that this part of our tragic journey to justice for my brother George is resolved," his sister Bridgett Floyd said in a statement.

"While our hearts are broken, we are comforted in knowing that even in death, George Floyd showed the world how to live," her statement said.

The trial of Chauvin, who was fired by the police force, began earlier this week in Hennepin County's district court on charges of murder and manslaughter. Chauvin has pleaded not guilty and said he properly followed his police training.

Judge Peter Cahill has set aside about three weeks for jury selection in the high-profile case. Five men and two women had been seated as jurors as of Friday afternoon.

Last year, Floyd's relatives sued the city, Chauvin and three other police officers involved in federal court, saying police used excessive force against Floyd in violation of his constitutional rights.

Although Frey promised on Friday that the city would be "unrelenting" in reforming its police department, it was not clear if the city was admitting wrongdoing as part of the settlement, and city officials did not immediately respond to queries.

"Every American remembers where they were when they first saw it," Frey said of the video showing Floyd's death. "Today's settlement reflects our shared commitment to advancing racial justice."

The settlement includes a $500,000 contribution from Floyd's family to the community at the Minneapolis intersection where Floyd died, which has been barricaded against police access by residents and is filled with flowers and other tributes to Floyd.

Chauvin was helping arrest Floyd on the evening of May 25 on suspicion of his using a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes at the Cup Foods grocery store at the intersection.

The other three officers are due to go on trial later this year on charges of aiding and abetting Chauvin in Floyd's death, which was ruled a homicide by the medical examiner. The Minneapolis Police Department fired all four officers the day after the deadly arrest.

(Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Additonal reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-03-13

 

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Would be interesting to know how such a large settlement was calculated, especially prior to trial of the accused. 

Civil settlements often occur after the criminal case(s) are settled. Typically, Not Guilty equals a lower amount, Guilty a higher amount.

That the city and their insurance carriers are offering $27 m now means, well the obvious...they expect they'd have to pay more later.

Justine Diamond's family got $20 m from the city of Minneapolis.

Just think of the improvements Minneapolis could make in policing with $47 m.

 

 

4 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Would be interesting to know how such a large settlement was calculated, especially prior to trial of the accused. 

Aggravated robbery can be very lucrative, he had at least 27 good years left in him . Assuming he made a Million a year ,there you have it $27 million. 

 

At least his orphaned daughter won’t want for anything I think mtls2005 is spot on they are expecting a guilty verdict obviously .it is what it is the cop did what he did under color of authority everyone pays when those in authority screw up no excuses 

Ok, that's good, now do the real work: lock the b....d up for with select inmates for the next 20 years and, more importantly, reform the braindead forces.

What would it be in Thailand maybe 100,000 b?

The cop was out of line but on the big picture, this type of settlement just makes cops and cities more paranoid about any type of physical force being used.  We will see, but the reverse could happen with cops being injured or killed more often due to the current tone/fear regarding cops interaction/actions with others. 

That's gonna buy a lot of Ripple.

1 hour ago, rooster59 said:

Chauvin was helping arrest Floyd on the evening of May 25 on suspicion of his using a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes at the Cup Foods grocery store at the intersection.

How they come up with these compensation figures astounds me, not that I don't agree that the family should be compensated, but was the guy employed, did he earn a wage which would go towards feeding his family as his life was taken away from him.

Naturally this is political and the cop used excessive force and his colleagues did nothing to stop him, they were dismissed and are on trial, yes the cop should go to jail for Floyds death and the the others should share some cell time and yes the family should be compensated, but 27 million USD is way over the top in my opinion, money like that could go to communities that really need it, 5 million would have been enough I would think, I mean if a bloke in the street did that to Floyd, would he be up for compensation, at the corner of the game board of Monopoly, I recall there being a spot that says; Go to jail, do not collect $200. 

41 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

The cop was out of line but on the big picture, this type of settlement just makes cops and cities more paranoid about any type of physical force being used.  

Sounds good to me.

Violent and twisted cop does his best to ‘defund the police’.

Time to end ‘Qualified Immunity’.

Troll post removed.  

 

The police officer should have been reprimanded to the fullest extend of the law. But that the city coffers (tax payers money) to the tune of USD 27 million is „justice“ just confirms once more again, how rotten the entire US legal system and its implementation is today. 

Is that money, awarded by the court, now being used initially to compensate all those shops who lost millions in looted merchandise and damages to their properties?

Question arises as the city is fined for something the city (but the police officer) did do? As the city pays despite not having instructed its officer to kill the victim, so would those walking away with the award now be challenged to compensate all those damaged third parties.

But yeah, that explains, why I never understood and hence accepted the supremacy of US institutions and consider the official US in Washington DC a serious danger to anything and anybody! 

What would have happened if he had killed a cop and he lived ? Cops family would have received a very low compensation payment.

 

26 minutes ago, Sydebolle said:

The police officer should have been reprimanded to the fullest extend of the law. But that the city coffers (tax payers money) to the tune of USD 27 million is „justice“ just confirms once more again, how rotten the entire US legal system and its implementation is today. 

Is that money, awarded by the court, now being used initially to compensate all those shops who lost millions in looted merchandise and damages to their properties?

Question arises as the city is fined for something the city (but the police officer) did do? As the city pays despite not having instructed its officer to kill the victim, so would those walking away with the award now be challenged to compensate all those damaged third parties.

But yeah, that explains, why I never understood and hence accepted the supremacy of US institutions and consider the official US in Washington DC a serious danger to anything and anybody! 

"Is that money, awarded by the court, now being used initially to compensate all those shops who lost millions in looted merchandise and damages to their properties?"

The money was not awarded by a court.  It was settled by the city, not by the court.  

Posts calling for the money to be used to pay for the riots have been removed and if it continues warnings will be given. 

George Floyd was dead by the time there were any protests or riots.  

 

So that's what a drug addicted combative abusive black man is worth. If he would have followed the police commands (just how hard is that to do?) he would be alive today. 

21 minutes ago, jaiyen said:

What would have happened if he had killed a cop and he lived ? Cops family would have received a very low compensation payment.

 

because the cop was on duty in a position of power. Being in danger is part of the job.

For a normal citizen its not, especially from those that are supposed to protect.

1 minute ago, BTB1977 said:

So that's what a drug addicted combative abusive black man is worth. If he would have followed the police commands (just how hard is that to do?) he would be alive today. 

How? He was cuffed on the ground with a knee on his neck. How could he do anything, he couldnt even breathe.

He would be alive today if the officer hadnt decided to suffocate him.

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

George Floyd's family receives $27 million settlement

Hiiii! Remember me. I'm cousin Amos!

True, the amount is large. However, the city authorities presumably did a risk assessment, and concluded the amount awarded by a court would have been much larger.

It just demonstrates how the ordinary ratepayer gets soaked by the incompetence of those running a city, and how screwed up the American legal system can be.

$640,000 awarded by a judge for a hot coffee spill? Where's my cappuccino?

2 minutes ago, Sujo said:

How? He was cuffed on the ground with a knee on his neck. How could he do anything, he couldnt even breathe.

He would be alive today if the officer hadnt decided to suffocate him.

I dont believe it was a premeditated act, so "decided" isnt really fair. I believe it was accidental, not a deliberate choice to kill him.

5 minutes ago, CharlieH said:

I dont believe it was a premeditated act, so "decided" isnt really fair. I believe it was accidental, not a deliberate choice to kill him.

Somebody signing a check disagrees with you.

19 million... ...Wow,  George Floyd has earned more this year than Pink Floyd....

14 minutes ago, PatOngo said:

Hiiii! Remember me. I'm cousin Amos!

And I , ladyboy Pink Floyd.

7 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Somebody signing a check disagrees with you.

Simply add that to the 27 trillion in deficit and it's all good. ???????? 

48 minutes ago, jaiyen said:

What would have happened if he had killed a cop and he lived ? Cops family would have received a very low compensation payment.

 

Different thing. In this case the person deemed the killer is a City of Minneapolis worker so the  City of Minneapolis is deemed liable for compensation. If a policeman died then they may get some compensation from the city but not because it is the City's fault as such. 

If a policeman was killed and the killer was rich the family of the deceased policeman could likely sue the killer for $27 million.

29 minutes ago, CharlieH said:

I dont believe it was a premeditated act, so "decided" isnt really fair. I believe it was accidental, not a deliberate choice to kill him.

Not accidental. Reckless might be a better description.

I wonder if even a change of venue would guarantee an impartial jury?

30 minutes ago, Venom said:

Simply add that to the 27 trillion in deficit and it's all good. ???????? 

Because the City account is somehow the National account.

I learn something new every day.