‘TRAGIC DEATH’

‘Totally Unnecessary’: Family of Tucson Man Who Died in Police Custody Wins $2.9 Million Settlement

Carlos Ingram-Lopez, 27, could be heard asking for his nana and saying “I can’t breathe” before his death in April 2020.

The family of a Tucson, Arizona, man who died after being held facedown by police officers during a mental health crisis has won a $2.9 million dollar settlement against the city and its police department. Carlos Ingram-Lopez, 27, could be heard asking for his nana and saying “I can’t breathe” before his death in April 2020. Footage of Ingram-Lopez’s killing wasn’t made public for two months, after which all three police officers involved in the call resigned. In September, the Pima County Attorney’s Office announced the officers—Jonathan Jackson, Samuel Routledge, and Ryan Starbuck—would not face charges. The city reached the settlement in December, and it was approved by the county’s Supreme Court on Monday, according to a press release from Ingram-Lopez’s family’s lawyer. Seventy-five percent of the settlement will go to Ingram-Lopez’s 2-year-old daughter, Sophie, according to the press release. “This was a totally unnecessary and tragic death,” the release read. “If the Tucson Police Department had followed their own basic protocols and training, Adrian would still be with Sophie today.”