The city of Detroit reached a settlement with the family of Aiyana Stanley-Jones, a 7-year-old girl who was killed during a botched police raid.
The city agreed to pay the family $8.25 million in damages for the little girl’s death, according to The Detroit Free Press.
"Aiyana's death was a tragic loss for her family and has been a heavy burden on our community,” Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia said in a statement. “We believe today's settlement is fair because it balances the needs of Aiyana's family and our responsibility for the city's finances. We hope this resolution will provide everyone involved a measure of closure.”
Stanley-Jones died in May 2010 when she was shot in the head during the police raid.
7 year old Aiyana Stanley Jones was killed 6 years ago today during an unlawful Detroit Police raid. pic.twitter.com/wopr9buHpU
— ashley yates (@brownblaze) May 16, 2016
A camera crew was filming the raid for the television series The First 48. The officers were looking for Chauncey Owens, a suspect in the killing of Je'Rean Blake. Owens was eventually arrested. Stanley-Jones’ father, Charles, was also arrested and charged with second-degree murder for providing the gun responsible for Blake’s death.
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Stanley-Jones was sleeping on a couch with her grandmother, Mertilla Jones, when she was struck.
Detroit Police officer Joseph Weekley claims Jones hit his gun, and it went off. Jones denied touching the weapon, according to The Detroit News.
Weekley was tried twice for the killing, but both trials resulted in a hung jury. The prosecution said he would not stand trial a third time.
Geoffrey Fieger, the family’s attorney, blamed the almost decade-long battle on the city’s bankruptcy and an appeal. He believes city officials understood the gravity of “killing a 7-year-old child during a made-for-TV police raid."
"It's a wound that never heals," he said. "(The final settlement) won't provide full justice. The only full justice would be to bring Aiyana back and I can't do that."
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