City of Austin Settles Excessive Force Lawsuit for $1.5 million

In the excessive force lawsuit filed against the City of Austin in Washington v. Olsen, No. 1:07-cv-00944-LY, the family of Kevin Brown claimed that their son was unarmed and not a danger when approached by Austin Police Officer Michael Olsen at a pub last October 2007, when he ran from the officer after being approached by the officer. Olson fired two fatal shots at Brown. Olsen was eventually fired from his position with the Austin Police Department.

While not all incidents involving an officer’s use of force to subdue or investigate a person give rise to a claim for civil damages, there are instances where such force used to subdue can be too much. For example, beating or tasing an innocent person, shooting someone who does not present a threat or using force in excess of the need under the circumstances, may be actionable in civil court. In the case of Kevin Brown the suit claimed that Brown was unarmed and pose no threat to either Officer Olson or the general public at the time of the incident late October 2007 in Austin, Texas.