March 2nd 2023.
Protesters who participated in the George Floyd protests in New York City are in line to receive a hefty settlement.
ABC News reported that the city and New York Police Department have agreed to pay millions of dollars to protesters who were arrested and detained during a 2020 protest in the Bronx.
The court document stated that police employed a crowd control tactic referred to as "kettling" to confine over 300 protesters into a limited area. It is believed that the total cost of the settlement will be close to $7 million, with each protestor receiving $21,500, which is believed to be the highest per-person settlement award in a mass arrest class action lawsuit. One of the plaintiffs' lawyers, Ali Frick, expressed her delight with the settlement. “We are really pleased with the settlement,” Frick said. “This was essentially a premeditated show of force against people who were demonstrating against police violence.”
According to the lawsuit, NYPD used bicycles to confine protesters, while other officers, some in riot gear, attacked demonstrators. Some were beaten with batons, kicked, punched, and pepper sprayed. USA Today reported that at least 61 people were hurt and sustained injuries, including a broken nose, lost tooth, sprained shoulder, broken finger, split lip, black eyes, and bruises.
The use of "kettling," also known as "trap and detain," has been heavily criticized by several city and police department leaders nationwide. Human Rights Watch, a civil rights organization, claims that the incident violated international human rights laws. Some activists have compared it to "Bloody Sunday," when state troopers attacked peaceful protesters marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, AL in March 1965.
“The violence inflicted upon us that night was intentional, unwarranted, and will stay with me for the rest of my life,” plaintiff Charles Henry Wood said. “What the NYPD did, aided by the political powers of New York City, was an extreme abuse of power.”
The NYPD blamed COVID-19 for the outburst, saying protests in the midst of it were “challenging” and asserted they have revised how they respond to protests.
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