The city of Minneapolis The city of Minneapolis has agreed to pay $600,000 to resolve a lawsuit filed by a woman who claimed that in January 2020, just four months after killing George Floyd, former officer Derek Chauvin pulled her from her minivan and forced her to the ground with his knee.
In a lawsuit filed last May, Patty Day, a former employee of the Public Works Department, claimed she was the victim of a false arrest and excessive force. She admitted to being intoxicated on the night of January 17, 2020, and feeling down due to her upcoming divorce and other issues when she became trapped in the snow for a few hours.
Eventually, Chauvin and Officer Ellen Jensen, his partner that evening, showed up on the scene. According to the lawsuit, Day suffered multiple injuries when the officers roughly grabbed her from her car and tossed her to the ground.
The accusation claimed that Chauvin then struck his trademark position, pressing his knee into Patty’s chained and subdued back, exactly as he would later do to end George Floyd’s life, and he continued to do so long after Patty was under control. After a court declared that the cops had no probable cause to arrest her and suppressed the blood alcohol test evidence, the drunken driving allegation was eventually withdrawn.
The $600,000 settlement was unanimously accepted by the Minneapolis City Council on Thursday. LaTrisha Vetaw, a council member, informed her colleagues that Day would receive $175,000 while her lawyers would receive $425,000.
To far, the city has settled Chauvin-related police misconduct cases for nearly $36 million, including $27 million for the Floyd family.
In a statement, Day’s lawyer, Katie Bennett, said, “We are thankful to have reached an agreement that holds the officers accountable for their actions, even though no settlement can undo what Patty endured.” This case serves as yet another illustration of how urgently justice and reform in law enforcement are needed.
Due to his conviction in state court for Floyd’s murder and federal conviction for violating Floyd’s civil rights, Chauvin, a white man, is still jailed at a federal prison in Texas. Racial injustice became a national issue after the Black guy was murdered.