Current:Home > NewsFamily agrees to settle lawsuit against officer whose police dog killed an Alabama man -FinanceCore
Family agrees to settle lawsuit against officer whose police dog killed an Alabama man
View
Date:2025-04-17 09:44:44
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The family of a man killed by a police dog in Montgomery, Alabama, has agreed to settle its federal lawsuit against the police officer who handled the animal, but their lawyers said Friday that they plan to appeal a ruling that cleared the city of responsibility.
The confidential settlement was reached in July in the 2019 lawsuit against Montgomery officer Nicholas Barber, who was responsible for the K9 that attacked and killed then 50-year-old Joseph Pettaway in 2018.
Pettaway was sleeping in a small house where he was employed as a handyman when officers responded to a call that reported an unknown occupant, according to court documents. Almost immediately after the officers arrived, Barber released the dog into the house where it found Pettaway and bit into his groin.
The bite severed Pettaway’s femoral artery, autopsy reports showed. Officers took Pettaway outside where he bled out while waiting for paramedics, according to family’s lawsuit.
“I hope that the case for the family brings some closure for something that is a long time coming,” said their attorney, Griffin Sikes.
The Associated Press has investigated and documented thousands of cases across the U.S. where police tactics considered non-lethal have resulted in fatalities. The nationwide database includes Pettaway’s case.
The lawsuit also named the City of Montgomery and its police chief at the time, Ernest Finley, alleging that the officers had been trained not to provide first aid.
“The Supreme Court has decided that cities and counties are responsible for administering medical care when they arrest somebody,” said Sikes. “We think they failed to do that in this case, and it is not a failure of the individual officers, but a failure of the city that says you’re not to provide medical care”
The claims against the city and the chief were dismissed, but Sikes said the Pettaway family plans on appealing.
Attorneys for Barber, Finley and the City of Montgomery did not respond to an emailed request for comment sent by The Associated Press on Friday morning.
Body camera recordings showing what happened have never been made public. It took years of litigating for the Pettaway family and their lawyers to see them. The judge sided with the city, which said revealing them could create “potential for protests which could endanger the safety of law enforcement officers, the public and private property.”
U.S. Magistrate Judge Jerusha T. Adams suggested that the family was “attempting to try this case in the informal court of public opinion, rather than in the courtroom.”
___
Riddle reported from Montgomery. Riddle is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
veryGood! (95218)
Related
- NHL in ASL returns, delivering American Sign Language analysis for Deaf community at Winter Classic
- Russia suspends Black Sea Grain Initiative with Ukraine, says it will return when deal is implemented fully
- A satellite finds massive methane leaks from gas pipelines
- Khloe Kardashian Gives Nod to Tristan Thompson's Late Mom in Birthday Tribute to Daughter True
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- TikToker Dylan Mulvaney Speaks Out Amid Criticism of Her Brand Partnerships
- Shop the 15 Coachella Essentials Chriselle Lim Is Packing for Festival Weekend
- Gunman in New Zealand kills 2 people ahead of Women's World Cup
- Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
- Sweden's expected NATO accession shows Putin that alliance is more united than ever, Blinken says
Ranking
- Rolling Loud 2024: Lineup, how to stream the world's largest hip hop music festival
- An unexpected item is blocking cities' climate change prep: obsolete rainfall records
- Yellowstone Co-Stars Ryan Bingham and Hassie Harrison Confirm Their Romance With PDA Photo
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $280 Crossbody Bag for Just $59
- Paula Abdul settles lawsuit with former 'So You Think You Can Dance' co
- Proof Tristan Thompson Is on Good Terms With This Member of the Kardashian Clan
- Arctic and Antarctic might see radio blackouts that could last for days as cannibal CME erupts from sun
- As carbon removal gains traction, economists imagine a new market to save the planet
Recommendation
Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
Kim Jong Un's sister says North Korea warplanes repelled U.S. spy plane, threatens shocking consequences
Climate-driven floods will disproportionately affect Black communities, study finds
How can we tap into the vast power of geothermal energy?
How to watch the 'Blue Bloods' Season 14 finale: Final episode premiere date, cast
Why Thailand's legal weed is luring droves of curious but cautious Asian tourists
Facebook fell short of its promises to label climate change denial, a study finds
The wildfires burning in the Southwest are bad but 'not unprecedented'