TO COURT

Family of Mentally Ill Man Fatally Shot by Police Seeks $25 Million From NYC, NYPD

Police shot and killed Vassell in April after mistaking his metal pipe for a gun.

The family of Saheed Vassell, the Brooklyn man who was shot and killed by police in April, is planning on suing the city and the New York Police Department for $25 million, according to a notice of claim filed on Thursday. Attorneys for the family say the city and police knew that Vassell “did not pose a threat to the life, health and safety of the police officers and third persons, and failed to take proper steps to diffuse a situation involving an emotionally disturbed person,” according to the New York Daily News. “We are very sad...we’re seeking justice,” father Eric Vassell told the newspaper. “We hope that everything that can be done will be done on my son’s behalf.” Saheed, 34, was reportedly off his psychiatric medications when he pointed a silver object resembling a metal pipe at several people on a Brooklyn sidewalk. Police said the object appeared to be a handgun. His behavior prompted 911 calls, and he ended up getting shot nine times by police. The NYPD declined to comment to the Daily News.