Explanation
Background:
This Ordinance is submitted to settle the lawsuit captioned Raquan Freeman v. City of Columbus, et al., Franklin County Common Pleas Court Case number 25-CV-5292, in the amount of Seventy-Five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00). On or about June 22, 2023, Plaintiff Raquan Freeman was a passenger in a vehicle (“Unit 2”) driven by Derrick Sharraud Craddolph, Jr. Also on June 22, 2023, Dylan Mullen was, within the scope of his employment with the City of Columbus, operating a vehicle (“Unit 1”) owned by the City of Columbus. Unit 1 and Unit 2 collided at the intersection of South 3rd Street and East Fulton Street (the “Incident”) in Columbus, Ohio. As a result of the Incident, Columbus Division of Fire transported Plaintiff and Mr. Craddolph to Grant Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
In exchange for a full dismissal of the case, along with a release of any claims, Plaintiffs will accept a settlement of $75,000.00.
Fiscal Impact:
This ordinance authorizes the settlement of a lawsuit captioned Raquan Freeman et al. v. City of Columbus, et al., United States District Court Case No. 2:20-cv-6256; Funds were not specifically budgeted for this settlement; however, sufficient monies are available within Finance’s Citywide Account for this purpose.
Emergency Designation:
Emergency action is requested for this ordinance to be effective immediately in order for the parties to effectuate the settlement of Mr. Freeman’s claims against the City, which is in the best interest of the City, and to pay the agreed to sum without delay thereby mitigating any potential claim of further liability.
Title
To authorize and direct the City Attorney to settle the lawsuit captioned Raquan Freeman v. City of Columbus, et al., Franklin County Common Pleas Court Case number 25-CV-5292; to authorize the expenditure of the sum of seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000.00) in settlement of the lawsuit; to authorize the transfer of $75,000.00 within the General Fund; and to...
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