Las Vegas Metropolitan Police will pay more than $3.5 million to settle two lawsuits filed against the department recently.
The Fiscal Affairs Committee for LVMPD voted Monday to approve $1.75 million and $1.81 million in settlement payments to Richard Dickman and Jasmine King, respectively.
Richard Dickman filed a lawsuit in federal court in December 2021 after his son, Jason, was strangled to death by an inmate at Clark County Detention Center in May of that year.
The lawsuit stated that Jason Dickman, 46, suffered from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and should not have been placed in the jail's general population.
King also filed suit in federal court in 2021 saying that LVMPD executed a search warrant on her home to look for a man who didn't live there.
The suit alleged that officers placed explosives on the door and detonated them without warning while King was near the door. An explosive device was detonated prematurely, causing the door to blow and hit King in the face, according to the agenda item for the committee meeting.
She said she suffered serious injuries, including permanent damage to her eyes.
Josh Benson, King's attorney in the lawsuit, said the litigation led LVMPD to review its internal procedures and make changes.
"Although the case is over for Metro, Jasmine has to live with these damages the rest of her life. That is a harsh reality that is often forgotten once these cases settle," Benson told News 3 in an email. "Out of the litigation came two important things: (1) internal policy changes to ensure this does not happen to another citizen; and (2) compensation for what LVMPD took from Jasmine’s life."
LVMPD's $1.81 million payment to King is part of an $11.5 million total settlement, with insurance covering the rest.