"The City has reached a settlement in the civil lawsuit filed by Floyd’s family against the City of Minneapolis. The City Council unanimously voted today to approve the settlement in an action that will be signed by Mayor Frey. The settlement is $27 million, which includes a $500,000 contribution from the George Floyd family to the community at 38th and Chicago," the city council said in a statement.
Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, was killed on May 25, 2020 when a white Minneapolis police officer placed him in a chokehold for well over eight minutes despite pleas that he could not breathe. Video of Floyd's death was captured on a bystander's cellphone and sparked a wave of protests across the United States and the world against racially-motivated police brutality in the US.
The lawsuit against the city of Minneapolis was filed on July 15, 2020. The lawsuit also targeted Minneapolis police officers Derek Chauvin, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng, who were involved in Floyd's arrest and death.
Family attorney Ben Crump, in a press conference on Friday afternoon, said Floyd's death was a watershed moment for America, one of the most "egregious" documentations of a US citizen undergoing torture by police officers.
Crump further said the settlement is historic because of the impact the lawsuit has had in forcing policy reforms in the city and in the country, to the benefit of all.
Crump urged protesters to remain calm and peaceful as the jury selection for Chauvin's trial gets underway.