REVERSAL

Korryn Gaines Case: Judge Throws Out $38 Million Verdict in Fatal Police Shooting

The judge’s move overturns a jury’s decision.

A Baltimore County judge has thrown out a jury verdict that awarded more than $38 million to the family of Korryn Gaines, a 23-year-old woman who was shot dead by area police in 2016, according to The Baltimore Sun. The judge, former state trooper Mickey Norman, dismissed both the family’s claims against the officer who shot Gaines, as well as claims against the county. The family’s case, which gained national attention, marked one of the largest verdicts awarded against a Baltimore-area police department, per the Sun. Cpl. Royce Ruby shot at Gaines, who had a shotgun, amid an hours-long standoff at her apartment, also injuring her five-year-old son, per the newspaper. Norman ruled that Ruby “believed she was about to fire the shotgun” and “was not required to be absolutely sure of the nature and extent of the threat Gaines posed.” Police had gone to Gaines’s home that day to serve a warrants both on Gaines and her fiance. She allegedly failed to appear in court for a case related to a traffic stop. Norman’s dismissal stemmed from post-trial motions that county attorneys had filed in opposition of the verdict. Gaines’s family reportedly plans to appeal.

HARD PASS

Mel Gibson’s New Movie: An Ugly, Racist Right-Wing Fantasy

Marlow Stern