Austin Makes its Largest Payout in a Fatal Police Shooting Case – Part 3
In February, 2017, the Austin, Texas, city council approved a settlement of $3.25 million to be paid to the family of David Joseph. This was the largest settlement related to a police shooting in the city’s history. See Part 1 and Part 2 of this three-part series to learn more about Joseph as well as Ezell Ford and Tamir Rice.
Ramarley Graham was a black African-American who lived in the Bronx, New York. On February 2, 2012, he was chased into his home and allegedly shot and killed in his bathroom by a police officer serving on the New York Police Department’s Street Narcotics Enforcement Unit. Graham, who was 18 years old, was unarmed.
A great deal of controversy has surrounded Graham’s death. Street protests were held in Wakefield, which is a low-income neighborhood with a large Caribbean immigrant and African-American population. The protestors alleged that the police went too far, and had no right to be inside Graham’s home. In addition, they claimed the police allegedly had no right to use force against the teen.
The story of Graham’s death has been the subject of many hundreds of articles. Frustration over perceptions of administrative inaction in the face of unjustified police violence has been the topic of many of those stories. Although pressure to investigate NYPD because of the death of the unarmed black teen continued to mount, the family perceived nothing was being done. Their cries for justice seemed to be ignored. There have even been reports of the officer responsible, who remains with the NYPD, receiving substantial raises since the tragic shooting.
In January 2015, $3.9 million was the amount paid to Graham’s family, in a settlement with the NYPD, in a civil rights violations case.
–Guest Contributor
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