FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: John Burris - cell (510) 928-5392 burris@lmi.net
Burris Law Media Contact: Lee Houskeeper - cell (415) 654-9141 newsservice@aol.com
Hall Family Media Contact: Patty Mitchell - cell (408) 429-4032 pm@pattymitchell.com
WHAT: Civil Rights Attorney John Burris, Scott & Taun Hall, Parents of Miles Hall To Discuss Their Decision To Settle Lawsuit Against The City of Walnut Creek In Fatal Police Shooting
WHEN: 11 AM, MONDAY, September 21, 2020
WHERE: Home of Taun and Scott Hall
Press Conference will be available on Facebook Live:
“The lawsuit was never about money. No amount of money can bring our son back or heal the wounds we will live with for the remainder of our lives. Our goal has always been, and will continue to be, for the city of Walnut Creek and it’s police department to recognize the fact that our son needed help that awful day. Instead of getting help, he was viewed as a criminal, and was killed as he tried to run home”. - Scott & Taun Hall “Walnut Creek Police officers did everything wrong by immediately creating a military-style skirmish line formation (4 officers side by side with guns drawn), yelling and screaming at a frightened and mentally impaired young man who was in obvious crisis.” - Civil Rights Attorney John Burris
Walnut Creek CA---The Law Offices of John Burris will hold a press conference on Monday, September 21, 11:00 a.m. at the home of Miles Hall and his family, to allow the parents of Miles Hall to speak about last Friday's $4 Million Dollar settlement of their civil claim against the City of Walnut Creek for the wrongful death of Mr. Hall and the violation of Mr. Hall’s rights under Federal and State Law. The city of Walnut Creek, CA through their representatives agreed to pay the family of Miles Hall $4 Million to settle their Federal Civil Rights lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed in 2019, alleged that the City of Walnut Creek, through their police officers, violated Miles and his parents' civil rights by using excessive force in shooting him dead when he was operating under a mental crisis. All parties agreed to the settlement. John Burris, speaking on behalf of the family who were out of town over the weekend, but who will speak to the media on Monday morning, said “no amount of money will bring justice for the loss of their beloved son, Miles. However, this settlement will bring closure to this aspect of the legal proceedings.” Burris says this case raised important questions regarding how the police perceive threats leading to their use of force when engaging with people experiencing a mental health crisis, especially if that person is black or brown. Much like George Floyd focused the nation on the use of choke holds and racial disparity in policing, the case of Miles Hall, which happened in June of 2019, brought home the challenges with protecting those with mental impairments when the police are called. The case of Daniel Prude, a black man, who was killed in March of 2020 after being physically restrained by Rochester, New York police officers after his brother called to say Daniel had been suffering from a mental health episode, is further evidence that there are urgent life and death issues at the intersection of race, policing, and mental health. With Miles Hall in Walnut Creek we have a case where the family worked with the police to ensure that their son, who had an ongoing mental illness, would be protected from harm by the police; but yet when confronted, the police instead of de-escalating the situation, used deadly force. The family has been traumatized because what happened to their son was the very thing they were trying to prevent, another African American young man killed by the police. As a silver lining, a strong community of residents and supporters in and around Walnut Creek deserves much credit for their willingness to stand up and support the Hall family for the past year plus. The Friends of Scott, Alexis, and Taun Hall (FOSATH) have continued to press the City of Walnut Creek to redirect police resources away from criminal enforcement to social services and medical treatments. Unfortunately, Burris says, much more needs to be done to prevent another tragedy like the family of Miles Hall went through. Link to the Hall family's statement.
PDF for this press release