In recent news, the widow of Daniel Shaver, Laney Sweet, agreed to settle her wrongful death lawsuit for $8 million.

The Case: Sweet v. City of Mesa

The Court: United States District Court, District of Arizona

The Case No.: CV-17-00152-PHX-GMS

The Plaintiff: Sweet v. City of Mesa

The plaintiff in the case, Laney Sweet, is the widow of Daniel Shaver. Sweet filed a wrongful death lawsuit after her husband, Shaver, was shot and killed by the police when he was unarmed, standing outside his suburban hotel room in Arizona. The police officer involved in the shooting, former Mesa, Ariz., Police Officer Philip Brailsford, was charged with murder in the fatal 2016 shooting of the unarmed Shaver. However, the jury acquitted him of the murder charge. Sweet filed a lawsuit in 2017 against both parties seeking $75 million in damages. Last year, the city of Mesa settled a similar case with Shaver’s parents for an undisclosed amount.

The Defendant: Sweet v. City of Mesa

The City of Mesa police responded to a call in January 2016 stating that someone at the hotel was pointing a gun out a window. Once on the scene, the police ordered 26-year-old Shaver to exit his hotel room, lie face down in the hallway, and not make any sudden movements, or he could risk being shot. Former Officer Brailsford shot Shaver as he lay on the ground outside his hotel room. No gun was found on Shaver’s body, but two pellet rifles (related to his pest control job) were in his hotel room. The detective investigating the shooting of Shaver noted that while Shaver lay on the ground outside his room, the officers ordered him to crawl toward them. The detective concluded that while the movement Shaver made was similar to reaching for a pistol, it appeared that he was pulling up his loose-fitting basketball shorts that fell when he was ordered to crawl forward.

The Case: Sweet v. City of Mesa

A settlement notice was filed in Arizona’s federal court, showing that Laney Sweet and the couple’s two children will receive $8 million from the City of Mesa. The probate court approved the settlement’s terms and appointed a temporary conservator. All of Sweet’s legal claims are dismissed without prejudice in exchange for the settlement.

If you have questions about how to file a California wrongful death lawsuit, please get in touch with Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik DeBlouw LLP. Experienced wrongful death attorneys are ready to assist you in various law firm offices in San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Riverside, and Chicago.