July 20th 2023.
Things are looking up for the New York City protesters who faced the police during the 2020 racial injustice demonstrations. ABC News reports that the City of New York has agreed to pay out over $13 million in a civil rights lawsuit to approximately 1,300 people who were arrested or beaten by police during several of the protests.
The lawsuit targeted 18 specific demonstrations that occurred following the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis. Lawyers from the National Lawyers Guild represented the plaintiffs and accused NYPD leaders of depriving protesters of their 1st Amendment rights with a campaign to greenlight unlawful arrests and indiscriminate brutality.
If a judge approves, the settlement will be one of the most expensive payouts ever awarded in a lawsuit for numerous arrests and allows the city to avoid an expensive trial. Participants who were arrested or subjected to police force by NYPD officers will be eligible for $9,950 in compensation.
The protesters claimed that officers used a crowd control tactic called “kettling,” which cornered them into tight spaces in order to attack them with batons and pepper spray before arresting them. NYPD’s attorneys, however, stood their ground, saying their officers were simply responding to a chaotic situation. They pointed the finger at other protests where police vehicles were set on fire and officers were hit with rocks and plastic bottles.
Gideon Oliver, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said the suit was about more than money as it will define how different police policies are implemented. He said, “Whether or not it changes police practices is another story, and depends on how New Yorkers—and the city government—react. We can’t let the police count this win for protesters as just another cost of doing business.”
The protesters say the payout is a huge step forward, but there is still work to be done to address police misconduct. With this settlement, New York City and its police force will hopefully recognize the importance of protecting the 1st Amendment rights of protesters and work towards a better future.
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