Hixon is black, and 911 transcriptions show officers were told the bank robbery suspect was white.

Lawsuit's settlement brings no joy to man beaten up by police

Golden Valley will pay $1.15 million to Al Hixon three years after he was mistaken for a bank robber.

By CURT BROWN, Star Tribune

Last update: January 23, 2008 - 8:44 PM

Golden Valley has agreed to pay nearly $1.15 million to a black man who police officers threw to the ground and pepper-sprayed after mistaking him for a bank robber nearly three years ago.

"This is nothing to celebrate," Al Hixon, 47, said Wednesday. "They violated my civil rights and I still have mental health issues. I think about what happened every day.

"I don't understand all the fancy lawyering, I just know a white kid robbed the bank and they beat me up."

Golden Valley City Council members approved the settlement Tuesday night rather than playing what City Attorney Allen Barnard likened to "Russian roulette" with the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Hixon, a longtime businessman and community leader in Golden Valley, had stopped at a service station in April 2005 to add oil to his car when a bank outlet at an adjacent grocery store was robbed. Police dispatchers said the robbery suspect was white.

Police say Hixon started to run. Hixon testified he was just trying to get out of the way of potential gunfire when officer Mario Hernandez took him down, placed a boot on his neck, handcuffed him, pepper-sprayed him and arrested him. Charges were later dropped and the robber was caught within minutes and convicted.

In September, a federal jury in St. Paul awarded Hixon $778,000 after finding Hernandez used excessive force. Golden Valley was also ordered to pay nearly $459,000 to cover Hixon's legal fees.

Barnard said the city's $1 million insurance policy will cover most of the settlement.

Strong words despite deal

The settlement is not an admission that Golden Valley police did anything wrong, Barnard said.

"The evidence from our perspective was the police officer did everything he was supposed to," he said. "This was an isolated incident and a tragedy for all around, not just Hixon and his family, but the police officer and his family, as well.

"It's kind of like a car wreck," Barnard said. "People like to think if someone gets hurt, someone else must be in the wrong and there must have been an injustice. But that isn't always the case."

Hixon's lawyer, Andrew Parker, said such comments are simply the latest examples of Golden Valley's insensitivity. He said the city could have settled the case before the trial for substantially less money, but he wouldn't disclose mediation figures because of confidentiality agreements.

"They refuse to recognize or accept that there are issues of training and sensitivity in this city's police department," said Parker, who spent five years as a young lawyer helping defend police officers in excessive force cases. This was his first case suing an officer.

"The payment by the city underscores the serious harm that can occur when police officers abuse their authority and city officials do nothing about the abuse," Parker said.

The quotes today in the Strib are just killing me!

http://www.startribune.com/local/west/14167416.html

The only reason they had to pay was that Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals that plays Russian roulette", according to the City.

They're down is St. Louis, we can just blame them, and the local mutual admiration society is intact.

So, nobody we know is responsible, we're all victims, I guess.


The cop "did everything he was supposed to do" and it's still an "isolated incident"?

Wait, police looking for a white robber, stop a black guy and beat him, and the city doesn't think they should have paid?

Wait, police looking for a white robber, stop a black guy and beat him, and the city doesn't think they should have paid? The court is a couple hundred miles away so their opinion should hold no weight?

I assume they were questioning him as a suspect for the robbery... They weren't stopping him for speeding while they were actively looking for a robbery suspect, right?

They're wrong and they know it. We know it. Institutional denial.

And Officer Hernandez is still on the street?