The family of Anthony Weber, a teenager from Los Angeles who was fatally shot after a chase with two sheriff deputies, will receive a $3.75 million settlement.
What We Know:
- The incident happened last year and the deputies involved did not face criminal charges. However, the family filed a lawsuit that claimed the deputies violated the civil rights of an unarmed teenager. Weber was 16 years old and a father to a young girl.
- The Sheriff’s Department alleged that Weber had a handgun, but a weapon was not recovered at the scene.
- His father suspects a cover-up and insists that his son did not own a gun, yet he was shot 13 times, with multiple shots in the back. A county counsel suggested the settlement to the board of supervisors. Despite the settlement, Weber’s father was not happy because his son is still gone and the deputy who shot him was not charged. “I think we got screwed,” he said.
- Capt. Christopher Bergner of the Sheriff Department’s Homicide Bureau alleged that Weber was a known gang member and refused to comply with deputies’ instructions just before he was shot.
- There have been other families that received settlements for shootings involving law enforcement. In Los Angeles, the family of Brandon Glenn, an unarmed homeless man who was shot and killed in 2015, received a $4 million settlement. Aiyana Jones’ family received $8.25 million from the city of Detroit after a botched nighttime raid led to the fatal shooting of the seven-year-old. Interestingly, the largest settlement for police violence in Minnesota was for the family of an unarmed white woman who was fatally shot by a black cop, according to BET. Philando Castile was fatally shot in Minnesota in front of his girlfriend and daughter, but his family only received $3 million.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is still investigating the shooting to determine if the use of force was justified, according to NBC.
