(COLORADO SPRINGS) — The City of Colorado Springs (CSPD) has agreed to a $3.2 million settlement with the family of Jeffrey Melvin, marking the largest police misconduct settlement in the city’s history, according to the family’s attorney.
Jeffrey Melvin, a 27-year-old man, died in 2018 after allegedly being tased eight times in 90 seconds by Colorado Springs police officers. The lawsuit claimed the department failed to adequately train its officers in the proper use of force.
“Justice has been a long time coming in this case,” said Darold Killmer, the attorney representing Melvin’s family.
A spokesperson for CSPD stated, “While the City of Colorado Springs has officially and financially settled this case, we want to state unequivocally that this settlement is not, in any way, an admission or indication that CSPD’s training standards were inadequate.”
On Tuesday, July 29, the City Council met in executive session to discuss the settlement. The council ultimately voted 6-2 to approve the settlement, with Councilmembers Dave Donelson and Kimberly Gold voting against it.
Darold Killmer, attorney at Killmer Lane, a Denver law firm specializing in police misconduct lawsuits, criticized the city’s handling of the case, stating, “It’s been seven years that the city has really dragged this family through the litigation process, all the time denying any accountability, denying wrongdoing.”
Killmer also noted that CSPD continues to point fingers at who is to blame for Melvin’s death, saying, “This is how they defend these cases. They point every direction except inward, and that’s why it keeps happening.”
This settlement is not the first of its kind for Colorado Springs. Last year, the city paid $2.1 million to Dalvin Gadson, a veteran who was beaten by officers during a traffic stop. In 2022, the city approved nearly $2.975 million to settle a lawsuit involving the deadly shooting of 19-year-old De’Von Bailey, which led to protests and the city’s first Law Enforcement Accountability and Transparency Commission.
CSPD Police Chief Adrian Vasquez defended the department’s actions, stating, “Unfortunately, attorneys for the Melvin family (Killmer Lane LLC) decided to put out a press release providing grossly inaccurate information regarding the settlement. Killmer Lane attorneys are fully aware of the facts of this case as documented through investigative files, court documents, and body-worn camera footage. I find it highly inappropriate and concerning that Kilmer Lane LLC is attempting to capitalize on this settlement in the manner they’ve chosen. When our officers responded to the disturbance call for service that led them to contact Mr. Melvin, they hoped only to resolve the situation peacefully.” Chief Vasquez continues to state, “Under the law and based on the officers’ training, they acted justifiably to detain Mr. Melvin, and we stand behind our officers and their actions.”
Meanwhile, Killmer noted, “If they continue to do things the way they’ve been doing them, and they can’t reflect upon their training practices and their policies and their policing of the community, then of course, it’s going to continue to happen.”
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