February 8, 2022
Mayor John Suthers’ Statement Regarding Settlement
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—Mayor John Suthers released the below statement in regard to the settlement of the civil case, today approved by Colorado Springs City Council.
“The settlement of the civil case was dictated by the desire of the city’s excess insurance carrier to resolve the matter and eliminate any risk of a jury trial in Denver. The City of Colorado Springs is self-insured up to $1M in liability for any incident. The City has excess insurance coverage for any liability in excess of $1M. The estimated cost of trying the case through appeal is $1M, so the City would be responsible for that amount whether the case was tried or settled. Pursuant to the terms of the insurance contract, the excess carrier took the position that if the City did not agree to settle the matter for $2.975M, any verdict above that amount would be the liability of the tax payers or the police officers themselves. Under these circumstances, despite the fact that the El Paso County Grand Jury, the FBI And Department of Justice, unanimously agreed that the officers acted in self-defense and wholly in conformance with the law, it was deemed prudent to allow the insurance company to dictate settlement of the case.
It is important to note that in the conduct of the civil case, neither the judge who mediated a possible settlement, nor the insurance adjusters assigned to the case suggested at any time that the officers acted unlawfully or contrary to department policy. Rather, the insurance carrier cited the ‘anti-law enforcement climate around the country,’ and much larger settlements in other cases in support of its desire to settle this case.
As Mayor, my commitment to our police officers and to the public is that when a police officer violates the law or department policy, they will be held appropriately accountable, but that when they act in accordance with the law and department policy, as the officers did in this case, the city will stand behind them, regardless of how loud the few voices demanding otherwise. Given the position of the excess insurance carrier in this matter, standing behind our officers dictated that the City agree to the settlement.”
CSPD Statement on Officer Involved Shooting Settlement
Today, the City of Colorado Springs agreed to settle the lawsuit referencing the Officer-Involved Shooting from August 2019. Our hope is that as we explain today’s outcome from our perspective, nobody loses sight that everyone involved are real people. These are real lives that have been forever changed. Any loss of life in our community, regardless of the circumstance, is a tragic event and the officers involved never wished to be part of this incident, nor did they want an outcome resulting in the loss of life. However, under the law and based on the officers’ extensive training, they acted justifiably to protect both themselves and the community. We strongly stand behind our officers and their actions.
While the City of Colorado Springs has officially and financially settled this civil case, we want to state unequivocally that this settlement is not, in any way, an admission or indication of wrongdoing by these officers. Rather, it was a decision made to mitigate financial risk to the City and taxpayers. This incident has been investigated and reviewed by numerous parties to include the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, a 4th Judicial District Grand Jury comprised of community members, the United States Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. None of these agencies or bodies found any wrongdoing on the officer’s part. As part of the settlement, the CSPD has agreed to additional non-monetary components, including officer training on Senate Bill 217, providing annual anti-bias training, actively maintaining an early intervention program, retaining officers' records, and participating in a United Way Give campaign. These policy and training requirements were already in place prior to the settlement and are part of the Department’s policies and practices.
The CSPD also wants to reiterate that the Department does not take its responsibilities to our community lightly. While we know that this was a justifiable incident, it has been difficult for everyone involved and for our community. We remain committed to serving our community honorably, humbly, and professionally, as well as supporting our officers who continue to keep Colorado Springs safe.