June 24, 2018

Police misconduct is costing cities millions

Governing -[In]  just the first eight weeks of this year ... Chicago paid out $20 million in police misconduct lawsuits, according to a local news investigation. That's outpacing its average of $47 million a year over the last six years. New York City pays by far the most. In 2017, it doled out a record $302 million for police misconduct lawsuits, according to the city controller's office.

For small cities, however, the financial impact can be even bigger. Most small governments have liability insurance to help them cover the costs of lawsuits. But legal costs for police misconduct can still place huge strains on budgets and, in some cases, can lead to law enforcement agencies being disbanded.

Recently in Lakewood, Wash., a jury returned a $15 million verdict for the death of Leonard Thomas, who was unarmed when a police sniper shot him. While Lakewood's insurance is expected to cover a portion of that payout, the city still has to spend $6.5 million on punitive damages -- an amount equivalent to 18 percent of the city's annual spending.

When misconduct lawsuit

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