Boynton staff recommends settlement in police lawsuit, second in July

July 15--BOYNTON BEACH -- A former Palm Beach County substitute teacher might receive $45,000 from Boynton Beach to settle a lawsuit the city resident filed after her January 2009 arrest.

In the suit, Belinda Lester claims false arrest, excessive force and a violation of her civil rights, and says the arrest was in retaliation for speaking up against the department at a city commission meeting.

If the city commission decides to approve this settlement on Wednesday night, it will be the second police-involved lawsuit settlement this month, totaling $90,000. At the July 1 commission meeting, a $45,000 settlement was approved in the 2013 Clifford Henfield case, which was filed against the city and former officers. Henfield, of suburban Delray Beach, claimed officers beat him for no reason after they arrested him in a kidnap case.

Attorney Sherri Renner, who represents Lester in her case, said she is happy with the settlement.

"Both sides worked hard," Renner said. "We're happy with the way Boynton Beach came to the table and worked with us to get this resolved."

Michael Burke, the city's attorney, couldn't immediately be reached Tuesday.

In the suit filed January 2013, Renner said the arrest was in retaliation for comments Lester made at a Jan. 6, 2009 commission meeting. At the meeting, Lester said she thought residents were being treated unfairly by police officers. She said she saw a man tased by officers earlier that month and thought the officers were using excessive force, according to the suit.

Lester was arrested Jan. 13. She claims she noticed she was being followed from Old Boynton Road to Fourth Street by a large, black truck with darkened windows. At some point the driver, later identified as officer Carlos Reinhold, activated his lights and siren. Fearing the driver was a criminal and not an officer, Lester continued driving until she reached her home about four blocks farther. Renner said in the suit the officer pulled Lester from her car at gunpoint and arrested her.

Boynton Beach city documents say Reinhold tried pulling Lester over for speeding and because there was an obstruction on her license plate.

The city's Risk Management staff is recommending the case be settled for $45,000, according to the documents, because a potential jury verdict would be between $75,000 and $125,000 and future litigation costs are estimated to be $20,000. So far, the city has spent $27,986 on legal fees.

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