Overview
- The settlement resolves Nicholas Hunter’s federal lawsuit and allocates $282,500 to Hunter and $217,500 to his attorneys.
- Teddy, a 13-pound Shih Tzu who was blind and deaf, was shot by officer Myron Woodson after a three-minute encounter in which bodycam video showed no aggression.
- City statements initially justified the shooting by citing fears of rabies and severe injury, a narrative later undercut by the released footage.
- Woodson was suspended, an investigation was allegedly never completed, the city paid him a $16,000 suspension-related settlement, and he later resigned to work as a process server.
- The Animal Legal Defense Fund helped fund the case and called the $500,000 agreement one of the largest for a police shooting of a family dog, as Sturgeon also saw its mayor resign and residents call for police reforms.