The city of Seattle agreed this week to pay $10 million in a settlement to over 50 Black Lives Matter protestors who claimed they sustained injuries from police officers during the 2020 George Floyd riots.
Seattle opted on Tuesday to settle with protestors in the lawsuit Adberg, et al. v. City of Seattle and cut the protestors a $10 million check rather than incur the expenses of continuing with the suit and a pile of associated legal fees. The litigants brought the lawsuit against the city in September 2020, so it has been pending in court for some time.
BLM protesters who participated in 2020 riots will receive $10 million from Seattle https://t.co/qeH7zaf7YH
— BlazeTV (@BlazeTV) January 25, 2024
“This decision was the best financial decision for the City considering risk, cost, and insurance,” said Ann Davison, city attorney for Seattle in an official press release. “The case has been a significant drain on the time and resources of the City and would have continued to be so through an estimated three-month trial that was scheduled to begin in May.”
The city notably admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement for a case in which the plaintiffs allege they sustained physical injuries from police during the 2020 riots.
According to Seattle, the case involved “hundreds of interactions between the plaintiffs and law enforcement officers,” over one million pages of related records, over 10,000 videos taken, hundreds of interviews with witnesses and extensive court filings.
“This settlement resolves the majority of the remaining claims arising out of the 2020 demonstration period and is a big step toward allowing the City to focus on the important work of today, while moving forward from events four years ago,” said Davison.
Seattle journalist Jonathan Choe, a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, was outraged, “Otherwise, this basically signals to anarchists and FAR-LEFT activists that they can trash the city and now be compensated for their unruly behavior. It’s still upside down.”
#BREAKING: City of Seattle just settled a $10 mil lawsuit related to BLM riots during the 2020 “Summer of Love.” City admits no wrong doing and says it’s the best move right now since the litigation has been such a time and financial drain.
Otherwise, this basically signals to… pic.twitter.com/1cYN6cEDBq— Jonathan Choe Journalist (Seattle) (@choeshow) January 24, 2024
By contrast to the $10 million settlement for BLM rioters, Seattle previously settled a lawsuit with more than a dozen business owners in the area and residents who experienced significant property damage from rioters in 2020 for $3.6 million, according to TheBlaze.
