New York City to Pay $3.9 Million to Family of Unarmed Teen Killed by NYPD

The City of New York has settled a lawsuit with the family of an unarmed teenager who was shot to death by police in 2012.

The New York Times reports that the family of Ramarley Graham will receive $3.9 million from the city for his death on Feb. 2, 2012. Graham was shot to death by officer Richard Haste after Haste chased Graham into his apartment from the street and cornered Graham in the bathroom while he tried to flush a bag of marijuana down the toilet. Although Graham locked the door of his apartment, the officer forced his way into the house, despite not having a warrant.

The New York Police Department also arrested members of Graham's family without cause after Graham's death.

As is typical of criminal proceedings against police officers throughout the United States, no charges were brought against Haste. Like many third world countries, police in the United States largely have impunity in regards to extrajudicial killings and police brutality. This fact has spurred protests throughout the United States that have seen public spaces occupied and highways in major cities shut down.

Although Graham was killed before these protests, spurred most immediately by deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice, Graham is one of the many lost lives for whom the protesters have been seeking justice and changes in the legal system. As with the cases of Garner, Brown, and Rice, Graham was black and unarmed while the officer who killed him was white.

Haste is currently at the center of a civil rights investigation by the federal government, but those investigations end up without charges more often than not. This is because the federal government must be able to prove that Haste intentionally sought to deny Graham's civil rights, which is exceedingly difficult to prove in court.