Verdict in Prince George's Police Shooting
A Prince George's County undercover narcotics police officer who shot and killed an unarmed college student, who he chased from Prince George's County, Maryland to Fairfax County, Virginia, was held responsible for his wrongful death yesterday by a jury that awarded $3.7 million to the family of the man who was killed.
Terrell N. Roberts III, the personal injury attorney for victim's family, noted after the verdict that neither the state of Virginia nor the Justice Department filed charges against the officer, nor did Prince George's County police find any wrongdoing by the officer. Yet a Prince George's County jury looking at the same facts found very differently.
These types of claims are nothing new in Prince George's County, who has paid $4.6 million in jury verdicts and out-of-court settlements in lawsuits in 2004. In the last 5 years, not including this verdict, the county paid $16.3 million in jury awards and settlements alleging excessive force or other forms of misconduct or negligence by P.G. County police officers.
Our lawyers have had many dealings with Prince George's County police in auto accident and other personal injury cases and our experience has generally been very favorable. Still, it is obvious that a small number of police officers in P.G. County are costing the county a ton of money. I am sure that the 98% of the officers who are doing their jobs as they should would love to have a share of the $16.3 million that P.G. County has dolled out over the last five years.
