CITY HALL — The City Council on Wednesday approved spending $3.2 million to settle lawsuits in a pair of police killings.
Following through on measures approved by the Finance Committee earlier this week, the Council OK'd paying $2.2 million to the family of Emmanuel Lopez, a 23-year-old shot 14 times in his back in 2005. He was trying to flee an incident in which police said an officer was pinned under a car after a pursuit brought on by a hit-and-run accident.
The Law Department testified that the settlement was advisable, as a court case could have resulted in higher damages if the city lost the suit.
Aldermen also approved $1 million for the family of Ryan Rogers, shot by plainclothes officers outside his East Hazel Crest home in a 2013 investigation into a cellphone theft ring.
According to the Law Department, lawyers for the Rogers family would have argued that he believed he was being robbed and did not know he was being arrested by Chicago Police officers.
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