Denver will pay $4.7 million to settle a category motion lawsuit that alleged that protesters had been unjustly targeted for violating the town’s curfew all through demonstrations over the killing of George Floyd in 2020
FILE – Denver Police Department officials transparent a person who fell to the road when they used tear gasoline and rubber bullets to disperse a protest outdoor the Colorado Capitol in Denver, May 28, 2020, over the demise of George Floyd. Denver will pay $4.7 million to settle a category motion lawsuit that alleged that protesters had been unjustly targeted for violating the town’s curfew all through demonstrations over the killing of Floyd in 2020. City councilors unanimously agreed to the deal Monday, Aug. 28, 2023, with none debate. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
The Associated Press
DENVER — Denver will pay $4.7 million to settle a category motion lawsuit that alleged that protesters had been unjustly targeted for violating the town’s curfew all through demonstrations over the killing of George Floyd in 2020.
City councilors unanimously agreed to the deal Monday with none debate.
The lawsuit alleged that the town directed police to most effective implement the emergency 8 p.m. curfew towards protesters, violating their loose speech rights, although the curfew carried out to all folks in any public position. It additionally mentioned that over 300 protesters had been taken to prison within the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic moderately than simply being issued tickets for violating the curfew.
“The First Amendment does not allow police to clear the streets of protestors simply because they do not agree with their message,” the lead legal professional for the protesters, Elizabeth Wang, mentioned in a observation.
The town denied having an reputable coverage of the usage of the curfew towards protesters however made up our minds that proceeding the lawsuit and going to a tribulation can be “burdensome and dear,” according to the settlement.
Last year, a federal jury ordered Denver to pay a total of $14 million in damages to a group of 12 protesters who claimed police used excessive force against them, violating their constitutional rights, during the demonstrations.
The curfew deal is the latest in a series of settlements related to the 2020 protests over police killings of Floyd and other Black people.
In March, the town council authorized a complete of $1.6 million in settlements to settle proceedings introduced via seven protesters who had been injured, The Denver Post reported.
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