Police brutality victim Randy Cox is receiving a record-breaking amount of money from a city after he was left paralyzed during his transport to jail in New Haven, Connecticut.
Cox was permanently injured when he was arrested and placed in the back of the van without restraints and handcuffed behind his back. When the officer slammed on the brakes at an intersection to avoid an accident, Cox was sent careening headfirst into the wall of the van, which broke his spine.
Exacerbating the matter is the fact that the officers’ bodycam videos clearly show the officers mocking Cox’s injuries and then failing to get him any immediate medical attention. He had been apprehended for allegedly threatening a woman with a gun at a party.
“I can’t move. I’m going to die like this. Please, please, please help me,” Cox cried minutes after he was injured, according to police video.
Worse, the cops are shown on the video dragging Cox out of the police van by his feet.
Mayor Justin Elicker said the $45 million payout from the city, which is deemed a record amount for a police brutality case in U.S. history, is justified as a deterrent against future instances of neglect and brutality.
“[Police] Chief [Karl] Jacobson and I have been very clear that we wanted to respond proactively to make sure that what happened to Randy never, ever happens again,” the mayor said, according to the New Haven Register. “Randy entered a police transport vehicle being able to walk, and now he’s not able to walk. And so what we have done is ensure accountability [and] changed policies in the police department.”
Famed attorney Benjamin Crump and the attorneys who partnered on this explosive case expressed satisfaction with the settlement.
“The city’s mistakes have been well documented,” Ben Crump, Louis Rubano and R.J. Weber, wrote in a statement obtained by the newspaper. “But today is a moment to look to the future, so New Haven residents can have confidence in their city and their police department.”
