Ohio Jury: Cop Must Pay $4.4M To Family of Luke Stewart

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An Ohio jury has ordered that a white police officer must pay $4.4m in compensatory damages to the family of a Black man the officer killed after approaching him while the man was sleeping.

Officer Matthew Rhodes “climbed” into the car of Luke Stewart, 23, as he was asleep on a street in Euclid, Ohio, in March 2017, according to reports.

The officers were called to the scene after someone reported a “suspicious car”, according to ABC News 5 Cleveland.

They apparently believed the man was under the influence and tried to get him to come out of the car, but Stewart allegedly tried to drive away. Rhodes then got into the car, and the two engaged in a scuffle. Rhodes used a Taser on Stewart, hit him and finally fired four fatal shots.

Stewart was unarmed.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/nov/02/ohio-jury-orders-police-officer-to-pay-44m-black-man-killed