New Haven working on how it will pay $15 million share of $45 million Randy Cox settlement [New Haven Register, Conn.]

Jun. 14—NEW HAVEN — One way or another, the city will come up with its $15 million share of the $45 million settlement with Richard "Randy" Cox, who was left paralyzed after being injured while in police custody last year.

Exactly how it will do that still is being determined — and the size of the award is not simply an indication of how "important" the case is, city officials said.

Of the $45 million total, $30 million will come from three different insurers that will pay $10 million each, officials said.

"We're meeting with our budget office to determine what we plan on presenting to the Board of Alders as to how to pay for the settlement," Mayor Justin Elicker said Tuesday

The alders "are responsible ultimately for the finances of the city" and "will need to approve the funding of the proposal and where that funding will come from within our budget structure," Elicker said.

"We're glad it's settled but we haven't had the chance yet to formally talk with the mayor or the budget director" said Board of Alders Majority Leader Richard Furlow, D-27. "It's hard to have an opinion until he tells us where he wants the money to come from."

When the proposed settlement was reached, "We heard about it the way everybody else did," Furlow said.

Board of Alders President Tyisha Walker-Myers, D-23, and city Budget Director and acting Controller Michael Gormany could not immediately be reached for comment. Board of Alders Finance Committee Chairman Adam Marchand, D-25, said he did not yet know enough about the details to comment.

"We are fortunate to have the insurance policies," said Elicker, who has said he hopes the case will result in long-term changes to policing in the city.

Asked how he felt about the $45 million settlement given that even such a high-profile case as the killing by a Minneapolis police officer of George Floyd, a case that touched-off the "Black Lives Matter" movement, Elicker said, "It's not about it being important or not. It's about what a jury would ultimately award a plaintiff."

A Hartford man was awarded $100 million in October 2022 in a personal injury verdict after he was paralyzed in a workplace accident.

"The important thing here is that this is a case about someone who is paralyzed ... and while it is a police accountability case, comparing it to other police accountability cases is not an accurate depiction" of what a jury might find, Elicker said.

The proposed Cox settlement includes "life care costs," Elicker said, pointing out that Cox is 37 years old "and will need care for the rest of his life."

"Randy cannot feed himself. He cannot shift his body in bed on his own," Elicker said.

Cox was arrested on weapons charges at a block party on June 19, 2022. The charges were later dropped. The settlement came days after New Haven police commissioners voted to fire two of the officers charged in Cox's arrest and handling in custody, Jocelyn Lavandier and Luis Rivera.

Elicker said Wednesday that the city has no immediate plans to fill the positions left open by the fired officers or an additional officer who chose to retire following the incident.

He has said that he and Police Chief Karl Jacobson "have been very clear that we wanted to respond proactively to make sure that what happened to Randy never, ever happens again.

"Randy entered a police transport vehicle being able to walk, and now he's not able to walk," he said. "And so what we have done is ensure accountability (and) changed policies in the police department."

Video shows that Cox was placed in the back of a police van and transported to a holding facility. The vehicle stopped suddenly at an intersection to avoid a motor vehicle crash, throwing Cox against the inside of the van, officials have said.

Despite his pleas for help, officers delayed getting Cox medical attention, and later dragged him from the back of the van by his ankles when he told them he was unable to move, body cam footage and video from inside the van show.

"When we did our assessment of the case, we're not comparing this to other police accountability cases," Elicker said. "We're comparing this to other cases where people were unable to walk, with paraplegic cases."

"People need a significant amount of long-term care, and in our assessment of those cases, combined with our interest in making sure that we do the right thing here, we felt that number was appropriate," the mayor said.

Reporting by Ethan Fry contributed to this story. [email protected]

___

(c)2023 the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.)

Visit the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) at www.nhregister.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.