The multi-million-dollar payout is the latest in a series of high-profile police misconduct settlements in which cities have paid millions of dollars to surviving family members.
“No amount of money can change what happened or erase the pain and heartbreak experienced by the family over his loss,” Aurora City Manager Jim Twombly said in a statement issued to CNN. “The settlement is an important step in moving forward with the city’s ‘New Way’ plan to restore the community’s trust in public safety, while avoiding a protracted legal process that does not serve the best interests of the city or the family.”
Aurora will pay $5 million of the settlement out of the city’s general fund, while the other $10 million will be covered by the city’s excess liability insurance policy. The Aurora City Council approved the $15 million at a meeting in July.
Last month, her attorneys announced the case had been settled in principle, resolving all claims in the federal civil rights case.
Attorneys for Sheneen McClain confirmed the $15 million figure to CNN and issued a statement: “No amount of money will ever bring Elijah back to his mother. Ms. McClain would return every cent for just one more day with her son. There will be an allocation hearing in the near future to determine the distribution of the settlement between Ms. McClain, who raised Elijah as a single parent, and the biological father.”
“Hopefully this sends a message to police everywhere that there are consequences for their actions,” LaWayne Mosley, Elijah’s father, said in a statement. “I hope Elijah’s legacy is that police will think twice before killing another innocent person.”
Spurred by protests in Aurora and a viral online petition, Gov. Jared Polis announced a reexamination of the case last year. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser was appointed as special prosecutor and opened a grand jury investigation into the case in January.
Earlier this week, the city and the state of Colorado reached an agreement on the terms of a consent decree to resolve Aurora Police Department and Aurora Fire Rescue issues identified in a September “Patterns and Practices” report.
The consent decree covers four areas identified in the Attorney General’s report: Racially Biased Policing, Use of Force, Documentation of Stops, and Ketamine and Other Chemical Restraints.