Recently, partner Larry Rogers, Jr. reached a settlement with the City of Rockford, Illinois of $1.1 Million on behalf of the Estate of Mark Barmore. In August 2009, Mr. Barmore was shot to death by Rockford Police Officers. Mr. Barmore was unarmed at the time. The Police said Mr. Barmore was wanted at the time for an alleged assault and they claimed Barmore grabbed an officer’s gun leading to the fatal shot. Eyewitness Marissa Brown disagreed with the officers’ retelling, and testified that Barmore was shot multiple times as he tried to surrender to police.
In the wake of the recent controversies surrounding the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases, the settlement of Mr. Barmore’s case has garnered significant media attention. Just as in the Brown and Garner cases, the Winnebago County Grand Jury in Mr. Barmore’s case failed to indict the two officers involved, finding that their use of deadly force was justified.
Channel 13 News in Rockford, Illinois covered the settlement and details of the grand jury’s prior decision in an article entitled “Barmore family attorney makes new call for federal investigation.”
“This is a tragic case; one that’s become all too familiar to the public,” said Mr. Rogers. “Fortunately, where the criminal court system failed, the civil courts were able to hold the city of Rockford and its officers accountable for their unjustified and excessive use of force.”
