Council in dark about payout
Wrongful death settlement still needs mayor’s approval
City Council President Ed Kosiur said Friday he was a little upset city leaders were not told about a $1.375 million settlement before reading about it online and in the newspaper.
Kosiur recounted running into Councilman Vince Riggi Thursday at a function in the Woodlawn neighborhood when Riggi mentioned the deal spawned by the May 2017 death of Andrew Kearse, 36.
The Bronx man died at Ellis Hospital after his repeated pleas for help, as he labored for breath in the back of a police cruiser, were ignored by Schenectady Patrolman Mark Weekes.
Kearse was taken into custody after he allegedly failed to stop when police pulled him over for driving erratically.
The potential payout, one of the largest in the region’s history paid to resolve a lawsuit, was news to Kosiur.
“Vince was very upset, and quite honestly so was I, so then I called (City Attorney) Carl Falotico personally and he said the reason we didn’t say anything is because the agreement hasn’t been signed,” said Kosiur. “Carl’s explanation to us was clear that no settlement is finalized until it’s signed off by both parties.”
Riggi chairs the three-member claims committee that deals with litigation against Schenectady.
The City Council gave Falotico the power last month to unilaterally nego
tiate a settlement, with one of the conditions being the mayor would have to sign off on it before it becomes final.
Kosiur said he has not discussed the situation with Mccarthy.
On Thursday, Mccarthy said he planned to sign the document but that he hadn’t received it yet.
Riggi said as a courtesy, city leaders should have been given a heads up.
“Even though it’s not settled, the council, who did give the authority to settle this claim, should have been apprised of what the numbers were so we didn’t hear it from somebody else,” Riggi said.
Kosiur said he hopes Falotico will update the governing body on the matter in executive session during Tuesday’s City Council agenda meeting.
The payout, which was confirmed by Sanford Rubenstein, the attorney representing Kearse’s widow Angelique Negroni-kearse, was first reported Thursday by the Times Union.
Kosiur said Falotico apologized to council members in a Thursday night email explaining that he didn’t alert them to the settlement because it hadn’t been signed by Mccarthy and therefore was not a done deal.
In that email, Falotico indicates all the paperwork should be done within a week.