CINCINNATI, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The city of Cincinnati has paid $2.36 million to settle 56 lawsuits alleging police improprieties over the last 10 years, according to a published report.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reported Sunday that police faced 137 lawsuits in the last decade, and officials have settled 56 of the 93 cases closed through October. Of the 137 cases, 63 accused officers of excessive force, of those, 24 alleged discrimination because of race, ethnicity or sex.
The 10-year settlement payout is a small part of the $685 million it takes to run the city each year. Nevertheless, Councilman John Crowley has called for an investigation into how police lawsuits are handled.
"Either it's (police) behavior, its bad litigation strategy or it's the fact that we have an overly litigious society that wants money every time something goes wrong," Crowley told the Enquirer.
The newspaper said its analysis is the first time anyone has tracked civil litigation involving Cincinnati police. Comparisons weren't available from communities of similar sizes because they haven't researched the issue.
Of the cash settlements, most compensated people claimed police officers beat them, shot them, sprayed them with Mace, let police dogs loose on them or inappropriately killed their loved ones. The city also cut checks to citizens who claimed officers charged them with crimes they did not commit.
The city generally paid between $30,00 and $63,000 for deaths at the hands of police officers but there were exceptions.
In July, Cincinnati officials paid $700,000 to Robbie Wittenberg, who said an officer punctured his lung and fractured his spine when he tackled him in a convenience store. Wittenberg, who has Alzheimer's disease, was tackled after he entered the store with a drill.
