Lawsuit settlement announced in Linden Cameron case
Sep 20, 2022, 8:01 PM | Updated: Dec 29, 2022, 11:25 am
FILE: Linden Cameron, 13, seen in this police body camera video screenshot, lies on the ground after being shot by Salt Lake police officers on Sept. 4, 2020. Attorneys for the family of Linden Cameron announced Tuesday that a settlement in a civil lawsuit with Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake City Police Department has been reached. (Salt Lake City Police Department)
(Salt Lake City Police Department)
SALT LAKE CITY — Attorneys for the family of Linden Cameron announced Tuesday a civil lawsuit against the Salt Lake City Police Department and Salt Lake City has been settled.
While no details on the settlement were announced, KSL.com reports the settlement to be $3 million.
On Sept. 4, 2020, 13-year-old Linden Cameron, who has autism, was shot 11 times by police during a foot pursuit. This came after his mother’s call to 911 for a Crisis Intervention Team. She told dispatchers that her son was having a mental breakdown.
Image of Linden Cameron (Wesley Barton)
In body-worn video, Golda Barton, Linden’s mother, is heard asking police to find her son so he could be taken to the hospital. And while the injuries Linden suffered weren’t fatal, Nathan Morris, an attorney for the family, previously told KSL that “he will never fully recover.”
The attorneys for the family issued this statement.
“Although the family remains confident that a jury would support their claims,” the statement reads. “The settlement represents a desire to provide for Linden’s long-term care, to minimize the family’s emotional trauma associated with the shooting, and to resolve the case outside of formal litigation.”
A spokesperson for Salt Lake City also issued a statement regarding Tuesday’s settlement.
“While the settlement is not an admission of liability, the parties agree that L.C.’s shooting was a tragedy,” the statement read. “The settlement represents combined efforts to reach a compromise that resolves this case outside of formal litigation and provides L.C. with resources for long-term, lifetime care.”
The spokesman for Salt Lake City also said that as a result of this incident, police and other first responders in the capital city have received training on how to “best engage with people who have sensory needs.”
“Following the events of September 4, 2020, and because L.C. has Autism, Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake City Police Department moved immediately to provide more comprehensive training for officers on how to best engage with people who have sensory needs,” said Andrew Wittenberg, a spokesman for Salt Lake City.
“The City partnered with KultureCity to provide Certified Sensory Inclusive training for all of its first responders – SLCPD, SLCFD and 911 Dispatch.”
A decision by the Salt Lake County Attorney’s Office on whether criminal charges will be filed in this case is still being processed.
Read more:
- Ex-police chief speaks out on shooting of 13-year-old Linden Cameron
- Amid record police shootings, family of teen shot by police wants answers
- Family of 13-year-old boy with autism sues SLCPD for officer-involved shooting
