Alabama police, family settle case

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The city of Montgomery has settled a lawsuit with the family of an unarmed black man who was shot and killed in 2016 by a police officer.

The city announced the settlement with the family of Greg Gunn on Friday but did not release the terms.

Former Montgomery police officer Aaron Cody Smith stopped Gunn for a stop-and-frisk and killed the man after he fled. A jury found Smith guilty of manslaughter and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.

The defense maintained that Smith fired in self-defense, but prosecutors said Gunn was never a threat to the officer. Gunn was walking home when he was stopped by Smith and died not far from his house.

The city said the settlement does not include an admission of liability but was entered into to avoid the uncertainty and expense of litigation.

“No settlement can erase this pain stemming from an unfortunate incident such as this,” Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed said in a statement. “This settlement is not going to bring Mr. Gunn back. It’s not going to change the past. As an administration, as a city and as a community, we will learn from the mistakes that were made and work to correct them. We will continue our efforts to build more trust in the community with a priority towards equality and equity.”

Gunn’s family had filed a lawsuit against the city and police department, saying that Smith illegally stopped Gunn before using excessive force to take his life.

Prosecutors had initially charged Smith with murder. Jurors returned the guilty verdict on the lesser charge of manslaughter. The trial was moved from Montgomery to Ozark, about 85 miles away, because of publicity.

Smith resigned from the police department.

A judge in March allowed Smith to be released from prison as he appeals his case.