Lawsuit over man fatally shot by Indianapolis police settled

A wrongful death lawsuit filed by the mother of a man fatally shot while being chased by a police officer in Indianapolis has been settled for $390,000.

The settlement was reached Jan. 31, WRTV-TV reported Friday.

“This agreement should not be construed as an admission of any liability or wrongdoing,” stated the agreement, which the television station says was provided by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Filed in June 2020 by Demetree Wynn, the federal lawsuit named the city, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department’s chief and deputy chief, and the officer who shot Dreasjon Reed.

That lawsuit alleged the police department failed to adequately train, screen and supervise officers to prevent them from engaging in excessive or deadly force.

The police department has said officers began pursuing Reed, 21, on May 6, 2020, after they saw someone driving recklessly on Interstate 65. Supervisors ordered an end to that pursuit because the vehicle was going at nearly 90 mph (145 kph), police said.

Dejoure Mercer, another officer, later spotted the same car on a city street and chased Reed on foot before, police say, the two exchanged gunfire.

Evidence reviewed by the state police showed that Reed fired two shots from his handgun and the officer fired 13 shots. Investigators were not able to determine who shot first.

Reed livestreamed an earlier car chase and part of a foot chase on Facebook.

Days of protests followed Reed’s killing.

A grand jury declined to indict the officer.

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