College Students Tasered by Atlanta Police During George Floyd Protests Will Receive $2 Million in Compensation – Essence

Two Atlanta college students have been awarded $2 million in a lawsuit they filed after they were stuck in traffic during a 2020 protest over the death of George Floyd and then pulled from their car, AP reported.

Messiah Young and Taniyah Pilgrim filed a lawsuit in June 2021, arguing that police had no reason to drag them from their car and electrocute them. Video of the May 30, 2020, incident went viral, and then-Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and then-Police Chief Erica Shields took immediate action, firing two officers and reassigning three others to standby duty.

Police body camera footage released after the incident shows a young man saying he did nothing and begging officers to let him go as they arrest him in traffic.

Young, who was behind the wheel of his car at the time, appeared to be filming the incident. Officers approached his car and yanked on the door. Young closed the door and told officers to let the young man go and get in the car.

Young tried to drive away but got stuck in traffic, and officers ran up to the car from both sides, shouting demands. Pilgrim, who was in the passenger seat, tried to get out of the vehicle, but at that point officers used a stun gun on her and pulled her from the car.

The situation escalated when police ordered Young to park his car and roll down his window. He refused, and officers began trying to break the driver’s side window with a baton. Eventually, they broke the window, used a stun gun on Young, and violently dragged him from the car.

Police can also be heard shouting, “Get your hands out of your pockets,” and, “He’s got a gun. He’s got a gun. He’s got a gun.” Young was arrested. But no gun was ever found.

The settlement with the city of Atlanta comes after two fired officers were reinstated and six officers involved were cleared of wrongdoing. At the time of the 2022 ruling, Cherokee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Samir Patel said the officers’ actions were justified by law. “Law enforcement not only acted within the scope of their legal authority to obtain compliance, but their actions were also largely consistent with the Atlanta Police Department’s use of force policy.”

In reaching the agreement, the Atlanta City Council, which approved the payout, was careful to say it was not an admission of liability. But Pilgrim’s attorneys, Dianna Lee, L. Chris Stewart and Justin Miller, said in a statement to the AP: “This case has been an emotional rollercoaster for two innocent college students who were victims of the unjustified use of excessive force by APD officers.”

Young’s attorney, Mawuli Davis, echoed that sentiment. “Resolving the civil case will allow these young people and their families to continue to heal from this traumatic experience,” Davis continued. “It is important that they help the community remember that the fight to prevent police brutality continues.”