Colorado Springs city council votes to approve $175,000 settlement tied to incident during George Floyd protests

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - Colorado Springs City Council voted to approve a $175,000 settlement tied to an incident during the George Floyd protests in June of 2020, according to a law firm in the settlement.

Details on the settlement were shared Monday night with 11 News by Andy McNulty with Killmer, Lane & Newman, LLP. According to McNulty, the settlement includes $175,000 along with policy changes.

The incident in question happened on June 2, 2020.

“Officer Wrede ambushed Celia Palmer from behind and slammed her head into the pavement despite the fact that she complied with police commands to disperse on June 2, 2020 in downtown Colorado Springs,” part of a news release from McNulty reads. “This settlement brings some semblance of justice to Ms. Palmer, who was brutalized for no reason.”

Part of the settlement adds this is, “not to be construed in any way as an admission of liability on the part of the City, but, to the contrary, the City specifically asserts that no wrongdoing, misconduct, or liability on account of the Incident or any matters related or incidental thereto, or otherwise, occurred or was established in a court of law, and it is further understood and agreed that all agreements and understandings between the Parties are embodied and expressed herein and that the terms of this Agreement are contractual and not mere recitals.”

The settlement includes policy changes for CSPD:

By March 1, 2022, the City of Colorado Springs will include the following language in Colorado Springs Police Department Policies:

• Dispersal warnings are mandatory, prior to utilizing less lethal tools or force to disperse a crowd.

• Prior to using force, an officer shall identify himself or herself as a peace officer. The officer shall give a clear verbal warning of their intent to use force. If the warning is related to deadly force, the officer will specifically warn of the impending use of firearms or other deadly physical force, if possible. A warning must be given with sufficient time for the warning to be observed. The officer is not required to give this warning when doing so would unduly place officers at risk of injury and/or would create a risk of death or injury to other persons. When a warning cannot be given in a situation where force is used, the officer will document the reasons why in the case report.

Officer Keith Wrede is the same officer who was disciplined with a 40-hour suspension for a comment on social media that read “Kill Them All” during one of the protests.