The city of Minneapolis could pay $105,000 to settle a federal lawsuit against a former police officer accused of kicking a man who was trying to break up a fight outside a South Side gas station.
The proposed settlement would end an excessive force lawsuit brought against the ex-cop, Christopher Reiter, 36, who was later fired from the force after kicking another man in the face in similar fashion, causing a traumatic brain injury. Reiter, who has a history of excessive force, was charged with felony assault last month in connection with that case. He has appealed his firing. The city's Ways and Means committee is scheduled to vote on the payment Monday before it goes to the full council.
The underlying lawsuit was brought by Shawn Ross, who was working as an attendant at a Shell gas station on Sept. 13, 2014, when he was kicked by Reiter. The encounter was captured on one of the station's security cameras.
Ross had been trying to break up a fight between an unruly customer and another man outside the station at 640 East Lake St.
That's when Reiter and his partner drove up in their squad car.
The surveillance footage shows Reiter walking up to Ross with his gun drawn, ordering him to the ground and without apparent provocation, kicking him in the chest — all within 13 seconds of pulling up to the scene. The force of the blow sent Ross to the pavement.
In court filings, Ross' attorneys said that he was slow to get down on the ground because of a prior injury and that he wasn't being defiant.
"Mr. Ross was an innocent bystander to this entire incident involving Officer Reiter, and he's pleased that the city of Minneapolis has made it right for him," Paul Applebaum, one of Ross' attorneys, said Thursday.
