Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

#1

Post by Suck My Glock »

https://news.yahoo.com/wife-texas-man-k ... 23987.html

PHOENIX (AP) — The widow of an unarmed Texas man fatally shot by police outside his suburban Phoenix hotel room in 2016 has agreed to settle her wrongful death lawsuit.

A notice of settlement filed Tuesday in federal court in Arizona shows that Laney Sweet, the wife of Daniel Shaver, and her two children will receive $8 million from the city of Mesa.

A probate court has approved the settlement’s terms and appointed a temporary conservator.

In exchange, all of Sweet's legal claims will be dismissed with prejudice.

In a statement released by her attorneys, Sweet acknowledged the settlement will help her family financially. But “no amount of money can undo the transgressions that cruelly removed Daniel from his family's lives forever."

“This settlement does nothing to cure the blatant lack of accountability by all involved since the night of Daniel’s death, which stands as an irredeemable blight on the criminal justice system,” Sweet said.

Spokeswomen for the city of Mesa and the Mesa Police Department declined to comment Wednesday.

Sweet first filed a lawsuit in 2017 against both parties seeking $75 million in damages. She contended Shaver had not provoked the killing and it could have been avoided if officers had investigated more.

The city settled with Shaver's parents in a similar lawsuit last year for an undisclosed amount.

In January 2016, Mesa police officers went to the hotel after getting a call that someone there was pointing a gun out a window.

They ordered Shaver, 26, from Granbury, Texas, to exit his hotel room, lie face-down in a hallway and refrain from making sudden movements — or he risked being shot.

Then-Officer Philip Brailsford shot Shaver as the man lay on the ground outside his hotel room and was ordered to crawl toward officers.

Brailsford was charged with murder in Shaver’s death, but a jury acquitted him of the charge.

Although no gun was found on Shaver’s body, two pellet rifles related to his pest-control job were later found in his room.

The detective investigating the shooting had agreed Shaver’s movement was similar to reaching for a pistol, but has said it also looked as though Shaver was pulling up his loose-fitting basketball shorts that had fallen down as he was ordered to crawl toward officers.

Mesa initially fired Brailsford, but he was later rehired to apply for a pension and then took medical retirement.

The U.S. Department of Justice opened a civil rights violation investigation against Brailsford. In March 2018, the Mesa Police Department revealed the DOJ had subpoenaed the department for all documents about the shooting.

The investigation is still ongoing, according to Sweet and her attorneys who called for the DOJ to “swiftly proceed.”


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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

#2

Post by QuietM4 »

If Shaver was black, Brailsford would be behind bars. The fact that Shaver was white is the only reason this story wasn't/isnt' being covered by the national media.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by Doc »

That was murder. Plain and simple.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by Joe_Blacke »

QuietM4 wrote: November 25th, 2022, 12:22 pm If Shaver was black, Brailsford would be behind bars. The fact that Shaver was white is the only reason this story wasn't/isnt' being covered by the national media.
The only reason Brailsford isn’t in jail where he belongs is because of Craig Mehrens. The guy is an absolute beast in the courtroom. How many other lawyers would have gotten a judge to exclude that Brailsford had modified his ejection port cover to read “you’re f’d”?

Look at some of the cases Mehrens has won. It’s amazing. Defense attorneys generally don’t win cases as much as people think. Mehrens is the exception.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by smithers599 »

Mesa initially fired Brailsford, but he was later rehired to apply for a pension and then took medical retirement.
Sweet deal for him. I wonder if any of us non-semi-divine beings would get a similar deal if we killed somebody in a bad shoot.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by smithers599 »

Joe_Blacke wrote: November 25th, 2022, 1:02 pm
QuietM4 wrote: November 25th, 2022, 12:22 pm If Shaver was black, Brailsford would be behind bars. The fact that Shaver was white is the only reason this story wasn't/isnt' being covered by the national media.
The only reason Brailsford isn’t in jail where he belongs is because of Craig Mehrens. The guy is an absolute beast in the courtroom. How many other lawyers would have gotten a judge to exclude that Brailsford had modified his ejection port cover to read “you’re f’d”?

Look at some of the cases Mehrens has won. It’s amazing. Defense attorneys generally don’t win cases as much as people think. Mehrens is the exception.
Consider the possibility that maybe the Maricopa County Attorney's office was not trying all that hard to get a conviction. I don't know, but is it possible that when the defense lawyer proposed excluding the port cover, the prosecutor did not object, or did not object very strenuously? To me, it smells like they were going through the motions so they could say "See? We tried to convict the guy, but doggone it, it just wasn't in the cards."
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

#7

Post by Joe_Blacke »

smithers599 wrote: November 25th, 2022, 2:01 pm
Joe_Blacke wrote: November 25th, 2022, 1:02 pm
QuietM4 wrote: November 25th, 2022, 12:22 pm If Shaver was black, Brailsford would be behind bars. The fact that Shaver was white is the only reason this story wasn't/isnt' being covered by the national media.
The only reason Brailsford isn’t in jail where he belongs is because of Craig Mehrens. The guy is an absolute beast in the courtroom. How many other lawyers would have gotten a judge to exclude that Brailsford had modified his ejection port cover to read “you’re f’d”?

Look at some of the cases Mehrens has won. It’s amazing. Defense attorneys generally don’t win cases as much as people think. Mehrens is the exception.
Consider the possibility that maybe the Maricopa County Attorney's office was not trying all that hard to get a conviction. I don't know, but is it possible that when the defense lawyer proposed excluding the port cover, the prosecutor did not object, or did not object very strenuously? To me, it smells like they were going through the motions so they could say "See? We tried to convict the guy, but doggone it, it just wasn't in the cards."
You would be wrong. A DA isn’t going to charge a case unless they have a good confidence of winning. Prosecutors are rated by their conviction rate. The fact is a prosecutor has a big hill to climb. They have to prove beyond reasonable doubt, and if they don’t see a likelihood of conviction they won’t pursue the case. It’s one of the reasons most defense attorneys loose in court. The case is almost always unwinable by the time it goes to trial. It’s also why over 90% of cases end in plea deals versus a trial.

That motion to exclude cost Brailsford $25k in extra legal fees alone. Mehrens put in significant effort and all the prosecutors I talked to were amazed that he got it excluded. They all thought the motion didn’t stand a chance. None of them though the prosecuting attorney did a bad job.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by Winmagbill »

This amount does not include the $1.75 million already awarded.

Brailsford was “rehired” for 1 day so he could apply for the medical disability. He receives a medical pension for PTSD of about $1,800/month (best I can recall), City will only give him a Neutral job recommendation for future references, and the City will pay up to $3 million towards future litigation defense.

IMO: All of these actions are due to the power of the police union over the City. If this money was paid out of a Union funds on scene officers would have been quick to tell it like it was. Hopefully the City has insurance for this that pays and Mesa is not self insured. Either way City money is covering this.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

#9

Post by TheAccountant »

This will continue until they’re required to carry their own liability insurance and are held personally liable for their actions. It’s funny that these cops will argue until they’re blue in the face that policing is a profession, but they scream anytime someone suggests that they carry the responsibility of being a professional.
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by kenpoprofessor »

TheAccountant wrote: November 25th, 2022, 5:02 pm This will continue until they’re required to carry their own liability insurance and are held personally liable for their actions. It’s funny that these cops will argue until they’re blue in the face that policing is a profession, but they scream anytime someone suggests that they carry the responsibility of being a professional.
I've been saying this for years. The courts can shoot down "qualified immunity" any time they decide to. Remove it, then make cops purchase "malpractice" insurance just like a lawyer or doctor. Get enough claims paid out, remove said officer from ever getting insurance again and no more police job anywhere.

I have to wonder why cops hate this idea, and testing for drugs or steroids. Hmmm.

Have a great, gun carryin', Kenpo day

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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

#11

Post by smithers599 »

Winmagbill wrote: November 25th, 2022, 4:26 pm This amount does not include the $1.75 million already awarded.

Brailsford was “rehired” for 1 day so he could apply for the medical disability. He receives a medical pension for PTSD of about $1,800/month (best I can recall), City will only give him a Neutral job recommendation for future references, and the City will pay up to $3 million towards future litigation defense.

IMO: All of these actions are due to the power of the police union over the City. If this money was paid out of a Union funds on scene officers would have been quick to tell it like it was. Hopefully the City has insurance for this that pays and Mesa is not self insured. Either way City money is covering this.
Wikipedia:
Bankruptcy and pension
In January 2018, Brailsford filed for bankruptcy. According to a pay stub attached to Brailsford's bankruptcy file, he has been working for a steel company in Glendale, Arizona.[36]

In August 2018, Brailsford was reinstated by the Mesa Police Department, staying for a further 42 days in what the department described as a "budget position". The department agreed to reimburse Brailsford for medical expenses related to his post-traumatic stress disorder -- the result of his shooting of Shaver and the resultant criminal trial. The reinstatement allowed Brailsford to apply for "accidental disability" experienced during the course of work. As a result, Brailsford was unanimously approved to be retired on medical grounds. Brailsford was also given a pension of $2,500 per month. The fact that Brailsford was ultimately medically retired instead of remaining fired was only revealed to the public in July 2019.[36][37][38][39]
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by smithers599 »

Did Mehrens take the case to trial? This article says he was replaced before the trial began.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/lo ... /90102564/

The article is dated September 2016. The trial was in October 2017.

Or did he come back into the picture later?
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Re: Mesa pays out 8 million dollars for Off. Brailsford's f*ck-up

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Post by Joe_Blacke »

Piccarreta Took over the case at some point. Don’t recall exactly when.

Remember Richard Chrisman? Mehrens defended him too and got him off of a murder charge and he was only convicted of Agg assault.
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