In Connection with a 2014 Alleged Police Shooting Involving Alleged “Unreasonable Force,” a Family is Awarded $7 Million in Damages
On July 13, 2017, a jury handed down their ruling in a civil case related to the alleged fatal police shooting of Ashley DiPiazza that occurred in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2014. The family of the deceased filed the lawsuit against the two police officers who allegedly shot and killed 26-year-old DiPiazza. Both officers were cleared of any criminal charges in the same year as the shooting. This week, a jury awarded $2 million in compensatory damages and $1.5 million in punitive damages against each officer for a total judgment of $7 million.
On May 18, 2014, the day of DiPiazza’s death, police officers went to an apartment on MacArthur Road in response to calls about a domestic disturbance. A 9-1-1- dispatcher was informed by a man that he left the apartment because DiPiazza had locked herself in the bedroom with his handgun, a 9mm.
In a federal courtroom this week, all three officers at the scene of the woman’s death described the chaotic situation when they got to the apartment. Initially, when the woman first went to her bedroom door holding a gun to her head, the supervising officer ordered officers out and instructed them not to re-enter. She then took the role of negotiator.
When shots were ultimately fired, one of the officers said that he wildly jerked the trigger in response to stress hormones, when DiPiazza began walking out of her bedroom holding a handgun against her head. The second officer who allegedly fired shots used an AR-15 assault rifle and pulled the trigger at the same time.
The lawsuit damages are covered under the city’s insurance policy.
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