Source: Pacific Press / Getty
The tragic story of Kalief Browder is one that embodies all that is wrong with the current judicial system and the long lasting trauma it takes on the people forced to go through it. Now 4 years after the 22-year-old Bronx native committed suicide as a result of his unjust stint in prison, his family has finally gotten a little bit of justice for what went from an atrocious situation to a tragic ending.
According to the New York Daily News a $3.3 million dollar settlement has been reached in the wrongful death lawsuit brought to the city of New York by Kalief Browder’s family.
“The settlement is fair and reasonable,” said attorney Sanford Rubenstein, who represented Browder’s father, five brothers and a sister in their lawsuit against the city. The deal will be finalized by Bronx Supreme Court Judge Mitchell Danziger.
“It’s bittersweet that the city had a chance to settle the case while he was alive or before his mom passed away, but I hope his surviving family members can take some justice from this,” said Paul Prestia, Browder’s former longtime lawyer. “He was a hero whose story touched so many people around the world, and I’m thankful he was a part of my life. He changed the criminal justice system.”
For those who aren’t too familiar with the situation, in 2010 Kalief Browder was arrested after being accused of stealing someone’s backpack and because his family couldn’t afford to post the $3,000 bond, he was thrown into the Robert N. Davoren Center on Rikers Island. It was there that he suffered beatings at the hands of both prison guards, other inmates, and was subjected to 400 days in isolation. After it was all said and done there wasn’t enough evidence to prove his guilt and all charges were dropped. But the physical and psychological damage had already been done and in 2015 Browder hung himself with an air conditioning electrical cord in his Bronx home.
That same year his mother, Venida, died of a heart attack at the age of 63.
While this $3.3 million dollar settlement is a much deserved win for the Browder family, it’s still just a silver lining in otherwise dark cloud that’s been hovering over the Browder family.
Source: HipHopWired.com
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