Diamond Reynolds, who livestreamed the aftermath of her boyfriend Philando Castile's fatal officer-involved shooting in 2016, is suing the mayor of Elysian, Minn., for his 2017 tweet saying she would spend her settlement money on "crack cocaine."
The suit against Tom McBroom alleges that his tweet was defamatory, false and racially motivated. Reynolds is black.
"The Defendant was alleging that Plaintiff is an abuser of serious drugs, has an addiction that causes her financial stress, and is someone who bases her entire existence in terms of her costs of daily living on support from municipalities and other state of Minnesota entities," the suit said.
McBroom could not be reached for comment Friday. He was a Rice County sheriff's sergeant at the time of the tweet but was demoted by Sheriff Troy Dunn to deputy in February 2018 for "misconduct" that included the tweet, according to court documents.
"His comments were not the beliefs of our agency, and we're trying to move forward in a positive manner," Dunn said. "I hope that [the public] just trusts that we're in this to do the right thing and that we're trying to provide great training and great people to do a job here."
McBroom has been with the Sheriff's Office for 14 years, Dunn said, and is now assigned to courthouse security. He is serving concurrently as mayor.
Reynolds was in the passenger seat and her 4-year-old daughter was in the back seat when Castile, who was driving, was fatally shot in 2016 by then-St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez during a traffic stop. Yanez was tried and acquitted in June 2017 of manslaughter in Castile's death.
Reynolds received an $800,000 settlement in November 2017 from the city of St. Anthony, the League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust and the city of Roseville in connection with the shooting.
