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FACTBOX - Criminal Charges in Police Killings of Black Americans


Here's a mash-up of some George Floyd images and Black Lives Matter symbols that have been painted around the world.
Here's a mash-up of some George Floyd images and Black Lives Matter symbols that have been painted around the world.

Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician, is one of multiple Black Americans killed by police.

Here is a summary of some police shooting cases and their outcomes:

Michael Brown, a Black teen killed by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014.
Settlement: $1.5 million.
Criminal charges: None.

Eric Garner, a Black man who died after repeatedly crying, "I can't breathe," while placed in a chokehold by a New York City cop during an attempted 2014 arrest.
Settlement: $5.9 million.
Criminal charges: None.

Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old Black boy who was holding a toy gun when shot dead by a Cleveland, Ohio, police officer in 2014.
Settlement: $6 million.
Criminal charges: None.

Laquan McDonald, a 17-year-old African-American, was shot dead by Chicago police as he was walking away from them during an attempted arrest in 2014.
Settlement: $5 million
Criminal charges: A jury found white police officer Jason Van Dyke guilty

Freddie Gray, a Black man who died from injuries he sustained while in handcuffs and leg irons after being thrown into the back of a Baltimore police van in 2015.
Settlement: $6.4 million.
Criminal charges: The six officers criminally charged in Gray's death were acquitted or the charges were dropped.

Walter Scott, an unarmed Black man shot in the back while fleeing on foot from a traffic stop in North Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015.
Settlement: $6.5 million.
Criminal charges: The officer pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Philando Castile, a Black man shot and killed during a 2016 traffic stop in a St. Paul, Minnesota, suburb after telling police he had a gun in the vehicle.
Settlement: Close to $3 million.
Criminal charges: A jury acquitted the officer on charges of felony manslaughter and reckless discharge of a firearm.

Stephon Clark, an unarmed Black man killed by Sacramento, California, police in 2018 after they chased him into his grandmother's back yard.
Settlement: Clark's two children received $1.2 million each. Claims by other family members are pending.
Criminal charges: None.

Atatiana Jefferson, a Black woman shot dead by a Fort Worth, Texas, officer in 2019 while standing in her home with a handgun after hearing noises outside.
Settlement: No lawsuit filed yet.
Criminal charges: The officer, who resigned, is awaiting trial for murder.

Botham Jean, a 26-year-old Black PwC accountant, was shot dead by a police officer who accidentally walked into his apartment thinking it was her own in 2018.
Settlement: None

Breonna Taylor, a Black, 26-year-old emergency room technician, was killed on March 13, 2020, by Louisville, Kentucky, police who burst into her home with a battering ram. Taylor's boyfriend fired his gun at the intruders who returned fire, killing Taylor.
Settlement: Louisville paid $12 million


Criminal charges: Detective Brett Hankison was terminated in June and indicted on Wednesday for wanton endangerment of Taylor's neighbors, a charge with a maximum sentence of up to five years. Two other officers faced no charges because their use of force was justified, the state's attorney general said.

George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who was reported for allegedly using a counterfeit $20 bill, died on May 25, 2020, while handcuffed after Minneapolis police knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

Settlement: A wrongful death suit filed against Minneapolis and four police officers is pending.
Criminal charges: One officer is charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. Three others have been charged with aiding and abetting.

Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old Black man, was shot twice in the back on June 12, 2020, as he ran from Atlanta police and fired a Taser at one officer, a non-deadly weapon he had seized from a second officer to escape a drunk-driving arrest.
Settlement: None.
Criminal charges: One Atlanta police officer was fired and charged with murder. A second was placed on administrative duty and charged with aggravated assault. The city's police chief resigned.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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