Officials from Prince William County, Maryland, announced a $20 million settlement with the family of William Green, a 43-year-old black man who was killed in a police shooting.
The settlement between the county and the Green family on Monday is believed to be one of the largest financial settlements ever given to a black family following a police shooting. Billy Murphy, an attorney for the family who also represented the family of Freddie Gray, told the Washington Post said the settlement is a sign that black lives matter in Maryland.
“I agree with County Executive Angela Alsobrooks that this historic settlement shows that the black life of William Green and the black lives of his grieving mother, son, and daughter truly matter,” Murphy said. “Black lives matter.”
Alsobrooks, an attorney for Prince William County, said the settlement was necessary to restore trust between the city and its citizens.
“[The authority to take life] is given to the police by this community. It is a trusting relationship shared by the community and police,” she said during a press conference. “And when that trust is abused, it is necessary to take swift and decisive action.”
Green was shot six times by Prince William County Cpl. Michael Owen Jr. while he was handcuffed in the front of a squad car in January. Owen was fired one day after the shooting and was charged with second-degree murder shortly after. He is still awaiting his trial, but he has maintained that Green reached for his gun and that he acted in self-defense. Owen was not wearing his police-issued body camera during the arrest.
Owen was involved in another police shooting earlier in his career. He shot and killed Rodney Edwards, 35, after Edwards allegedly pulled a gun on Owen. Owen had requested workers compensation to address psychological challenges stemming from the shooting of Edwards, but he failed to report that to Prince William County as he was required to do.
Several departments have entered multimillion-dollar settlements with families following police shootings. The city of Minneapolis entered a $20 million settlement with the family of Justine Ruszczyk, a white woman who was wrongfully killed when officers responded to her 911 call. The family of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old black woman, recently settled with the city of Louisville, Kentucky, for $12 million following her death earlier this year.
