TOLEDO, Ohio — UPDATE: Toledo City Council on Wednesday approved the $400,000 settlement.
The original story is below:
Toledo City Council is expected to vote Wednesday on settlement offers for 14 people who sued the city and Toledo police for injuries sustained during a 2020 George Floyd protest.
The total settlement is for $400,000, with 13 of the plaintiffs receiving $25,000 apiece and one woman receiving $75,000.
Katey David will receive more than her fellow plaintiffs because she sustained serious injuries when she was struck in the back of the head by a wooden bullet fired from a SWAT vehicle on May 30, 2020.
Two additional plaintiffs — Saray Pratt and Robert Kowalski — have not reached a deal with the city. Kowalski was hit by a wooden bullet, which broke his eye socket. Pratt was hit in the lower leg by a wooden bullet, which shattered her leg into four pieces.
A few weeks after the incident, Pratt told 11 Investigates that she was holding a Black Lives Matter sign near The Attic on Adams bar when she was struck. Pictures and videos seen by 11 Investigates show her on the corner, then slightly on the street. A later video shows people gathering around her as a Bearcat assault vehicle continues down the street.
“I got shot four minutes from my home by people who are supposed to protect me. It doesn't make sense to me,” Pratt said in 2020.
Kowalski was videotaping the protest near the courthouse when he was struck.
Their attorney, Sarah Gelsomino of Cleveland-based Friedman, Gilbert + Gerhardstein, said, “What happened to them cannot be swept under a rug. It is extremely dangerous to allow police to use targeted violence against protesters – peaceful protesters.”
City of Toledo law director Dale Emch said the settlements that have been reached do not mean that the city is admitting fault.
“We are continuing to litigate the case and contest our liabilities. But the settlement of these claims, I believe, is in the best interest of the city,” Emch said.
Though the case was originally filed in 2021, settlements have not been reached for nearly two years largely because the sides were negotiating an injunction approved by Judge James Carr.
Three key elements of it are that wooden bullets and bean bags cannot be fired against peaceful demonstrators, tear gas can only be used with sufficient notice and warning, and SWAT officers cannot use encrypted conversation channels during a protest. It must be recorded so that it can reviewed later.
“I’m so happy for these plaintiffs that they were able to achieve this kind of change with a lawsuit. Not everyone can do that,” Gelsomino said. “This injunction will make a difference. It will make protesting safer in Toledo.”