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New Haven, Connecticut – The city of New Haven has agreed to a $45 million settlement with Randy Cox, who was paralyzed while being transported handcuffed and without a seat belt in the back of a police van following his arrest last year, the city’s mayor and attorneys said Saturday.
The New York Post reported that the agreement was reached Friday evening following a daylong conference with a federal magistrate judge.
The city had previously fired two police officers involved in the incident, who authorities said treated Cox recklessly and without compassion.
“The city’s mistakes have been well documented,” a statement by attorneys Ben Crump, Louis Rubano and R.J. Weber, who represented Cox, said. “But today is a moment to look to the future, so New Haven residents can have confidence in their city and their police department.”
Cox, 36, was left paralyzed from the chest down June 19, 2022, when the police van he was riding in braked hard, sending him head-first into a metal partition while his hands were cuffed behind his back.
Cox had been arrested on charges of threatening a woman with a gun, which were later dismissed.
Once at the police station, officers mocked Cox and accused him of being drunk and faking his injuries, according to surveillance and body-worn camera footage
Officers dragged Cox by his feet out of the van and placed him in a holding cell prior to his eventual transfer to a hospital.
Five officers, including those who were fired, face criminal charges in the case.
Each of them have pleaded not guilty.
Cox eventually sued the officers and the city for $100 million. His attorneys called the settlement the largest ever in a police misconduct case.
Cox is black, while all five officers who were arrested are black or Hispanic.
New Haven police have since adopted reforms that include making sure all prisoners wear seat belts.
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Source: www.lawofficer.com