$10.5 Million Settlement Reached In Fatal Shooting Of Elk Grove Man In 2023

Elk Grove Village's insurers have reached a $10.5 million settlement with the mother of a 24-year-old man who was fatally shot by village police officers in 2023, Mayor Craig Johnson announced Tuesday.

Johnson read a prepared statement at a village board meeting, stating that the settlement with Donna Murray for the death of her son, Jack Murray, will be paid entirely by the village's liability insurance, except for a $200,000 deductible.

"With this action, Elk Grove taxpayers won't be financially responsible for this lawsuit," Johnson said. "That said, I'm beyond disappointed with this outcome, given that our officers were completely exonerated in their actions by multiple agencies, and I commended them for following the appropriate protocols they've been taught throughout a tense, difficult situation."

Jack Murray was shot on Dec. 1, 2023. Videos released by the village show him walking with a knife outside a home. Village officials said Murray was advancing on responding officers, who opened fire after a Taser failed to stop him. Officers administered first aid, but Murray died from his injuries.

The Murray family filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court in May 2024 against the village and five unnamed officers.

At a news conference on Wednesday, family attorney Antonio Romanucci said police failed to follow their own policies, failed to warn Murray he could be shot, and did not deploy a less-than-lethal beanbag gun until a second after officers fired bullets. Romanucci said Murray suffered from mental illness.

"This settlement contradicts the mayor's statement of disappointment, as the settlement reflects the tragic loss of life suffered by the Murray family," Romanucci said. "The mayor's tone-deafness in his statement as a representative of all the people of the village is appalling."

Romanucci said the $10.5 million agreement is the largest civil settlement in Illinois history for a police shooting where the person killed was not a bystander. He added that the village's insurance carriers insisted on settling to avoid the financial risk of a Cook County jury trial. The case had been tentatively scheduled for trial on June 1.

According to Romanucci, officers admitted under oath during depositions that they could have taken more time to evaluate options that might have kept Murray alive. He noted that no officers were disciplined. Attorneys for the family said neither Johnson nor the police chief has accepted responsibility for the officers' actions.

While the Cook County State's Attorney's Office declined to file criminal charges against the officers, Romanucci emphasized that the decision was not an exoneration and did not limit civil action.

Donna Murray said her family remains broken by the loss and plans to use a portion of the settlement to fund a community project in her son's name.

Johnson said this is the first insurance payout of its kind for the village in 22 years. He said it remains unclear how the settlement will impact the village's future liability insurance rates.

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