The family of a man, who was left brain-damaged after being slammed into a concrete wall by a sheriff’s officer in Seattle, will receive an additional $1.478 million on top of the $10 million settlement it was awarded previously, The Seattle Times reported.
http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2019727116_harris21m.html
The case stems from a 2009 incident involving Christopher Harris, 32, of Olympia, who because of his traumatic brain injury is paralyzed and can’t speak, according to The Seattle Times. In a case of mistaken identity, a witness wrongly identified Harris as a suspect in a fight outside a store in the Belltown section of Seattle.
King County Sheriff’s Officers went to apprehend Harris, and one of them, Matthew Paul, shoved him in the chest. Harris hit a concrete wall outside a local theater, The Seattle Times reported. There is a surveillance video of the incident.
King County had reached a record $10 million settlement of a lawsuit filed by Harris’ family. But after that settlement, attorneys for the relatives learned that the county had withheld documents that showed that Paul had a history of questionable behavior, according to The Seattle Times.
In September, a judge found that the documents had been unlawfully withheld.
So this week King County agreed to a $1.178 million settlement on that issue. In addition, the judge levied a $300,000 sanction against the county. That means Harris’ family will be getting another $1.478 million in addition to the $10 million settlement.
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