CLEVELAND -- Almost a year to the day that two unarmed occupants in a car were fatally shot by 13 police officers following a pursuit that ended in East Cleveland, the family of the victims filed a federal lawsuit against the city "...seeking damages and police reform to protect the public," according to their attorney David B. Malik.
The lawsuit, filed electronically in U.S. District Court on Thanksgiving 2013, lists Malik and Cleveland attorneys Terry Gilbert and Gordon S. Friedman as the lead attorneys. The pursuit happened on Nov. 29, 2012.
The 59-page document listed causes of action that include excessive force, failure to supervise, assault/battery, negligent supervision and wrongful death. The lawsuit also asks for damages and that a jury trial be held.
On July 14, 2014, documents filed in U.S. District Court in Cleveland show that U.S. District Judge Dan Polster approved a settlement in that civil lawsuit filed against the City of Cleveland and Cleveland Police in connection with the fatal shootings of Malissa Williams, 30, and Timothy Russell, 43, on Nov. 29, 2012.
In November 2014, Cuyahoga County Probate Judge Anthony Russo approved the settlement. It was then disclosed that the families of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams will each receive $1.5 million.
The settlement was reached during a nine-and-a-half hour hearing in July 2014.
The families had requested a jury trial when they filed the federal lawsuit almost exactly a year after the shooting.
The plaintiffs were Elizabeth Goodwin, administrator for Williams' estate, represented by attorney David Malik and Debora Bodnar, administrator for Russell's estate, represented by attorney Terry Gilbert.
Police say the incident started on West St. Clair Avenue and Lakeside Avenue by the Justice Center in downtown Cleveland.
An officer saw the car drive past, heard a loud report as the blue 1979 Chevy Malibu drove away.
Officers pursued the car as it drove off and the driver refused to stop. The chase went through Cleveland, Bratenahl and East Cleveland. The chase ended in the parking lot of Heritage Middle School in East Cleveland where 137 shots were fired. Williams and Russell were pronounced dead at the scene.
Malik's office also released a number of X-ray photos showing the entry wounds on Williams' body.
Points mentioned in the lawsuit:
- On Nov. 29, 2012, Russell and his passenger Williams traveled in the Malibu in downtown Cleveland. A Cleveland police officer heard a sound that he claimed to be a gunshot. It was subsequently determined that the sound the officer heard was the Malibu backfiring.
- A 22-minute chase ensued that involved dozens of officers from the Cleveland Police Department.
- The chase involved 60 cruisers, a violation of the City's General Police Orders, before ending in a barrage of unnecessary gunfire. Police fired 137 shots at the vehicle after it was stopped behind Heritage Middle School in East Cleveland.
- Russell, 43, was shot 23 times and passenger Williams, 30, was shot 24 times. One of the officers involved in the shooting fired 49 rounds of ammunition.
In October 2013, a review of a deadly police chase led to some discipline of officers and supervisors.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said, "The system failed everyone" when he released a report about the incident. DeWine said police misinterpreted facts and did not follow rules.
The lawsuit called for a model between the police and public similar to what the Cincinnati Police Department adopted in 2002 after years of discourse and tension with the public. The city worked with community leaders, clergy and citizens to set up guidelines that not only required the full cooperation of all parties, but sincerity in wanting to achieve sustainable results."
