The city of Lakewood, Washington, has reached an agreement with the family of a 26-year-old black man who was shot thrice by an officer who claimed he was acting in self-defense.

He said Joquin died on May 1, 2020, after Officer Michael Wiley stopped him for running a stop sign. The $8 million settlement announced last week is coming to an end federal civil rights lawsuit Joquin’s parents filed a criticism against the officer, who claimed their son had lunged for a gun lying on the floor of his vehicle.

According to the lawsuit, Wiley approached Joquin’s automobile with a gun drawn and told him, “Shut up or you’ll get shot.” The lawsuit states that Joquin, as Wiley requested, had his hands up when he was shot. After the shooting, Wiley allegedly pulled Joquin out of the automobile and “threw him to the ground.”

Wiley was involved in one other expensive suit v. Lakewood in 2017. He was one in every of three officers found by a jury answerable for the death of one other young black man, Leonard Thomas, for a record $15.1 million. A post-trial settlement was reached in exchange for $13 million and a promise not to appeal.

Thomas was holding his 4-year-old son when he was shot in the stomach by a Lakewood SWAT sniper. Wiley reportedly announced “Jackpot!” Testimony shows he spoke on the police radio after Thomas was shot and later praised his colleague for taking the “million-dollar f–king shot,” according to trial testimony. Thomas bled to death, begging cops not to take his boy.

Evidence from Thomas’ trial “revealed that Wiley was an exceptionally aggressive officer who had an insufficient understanding of the use of force, was willing to use weapons, explosives and unnecessary force, and who demonstrated a striking lack of concern for life,” Joquin filed the family’s lawsuit.

Wiley remains in service. Joquin’s lawsuit alleged that Lakewood police were “unreasonable and reckless” in continuing to employ him regardless that a jury in Thomas found that he had violated the victim’s civil rights.

A previous attempt to dismiss Joquin’s lawsuit was blocked by the US District Judge David Estudillo. Wiley, the judge wrote in his August order, had a “documented history of using force against people he helped detain.”

He said there was enough evidence for the jury to find that “Joquin did not engage in furtive or threatening behavior during the encounter.”

Dawn Kortner, Joquin’s mother, he said in a 2021 interview, she never believed Wiley’s account.

“I feel like it’s overkill,” Kortner said. “He took steps he shouldn’t have taken. I believe he was too aggressive and I would like him to be held accountable for what he did. He shouldn’t receive a pension and sit at home and enjoy his children when we will not enjoy Said.

Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office Attorney Mary Robnett declined to press charges against Wiley for Joquin’s death.

In a letter to Lakewood Police Chief Mike Zaro, Robnett cited Joquin’s “unpredictable and dangerous behavior” in running a stop sign in front of police on a busy road. She also concluded that bullet trajectory evidence showed that Joquin didn’t raise his hands when Wiley shot him.

Wiley was also cleared for internal examination.

In a statement, Lakewood officials said: “Any life cut short is a tragedy and we can only imagine the suffering and pain they experience. The decision to reach an agreement was made with the best outcome for all parties involved in mind.”

As Democrats proceed to lick their wounds following Kamala Harris’ stunning defeat to President-elect Donald Trump, all eyes are on Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), whose party in Congress has little likelihood of regaining the majority in the House of Representatives.

If Democrats manage to win the House, it’s going to give the party its only hope of slowing Trump’s agenda. Jeffries, a 54-year-old congressman from Brooklyn, New York, also became Speaker of the House, making history as the first African American to hold the position, just two steps of separation in the line of presidential succession.

As Donald Trump begins to appoint members of his second administration’s Cabinet to be tasked with implementing his agenda – which incorporates proposed mass deportations, the elimination of racial equity programs and big cuts in federal spending – Democrats’ ability to play defense will probably be crucial to mitigating this. , which they see as potentially critical blows to vulnerable communities.

Democrats view Jeffries, the current House minority leader, as a key leader of the party, especially if his caucus can gain a majority. This would involve the commission’s control – which incorporates significant subpoena power – and shaping the federal budget. At the very least, it might enable Democrats to force Republicans to make concessions where possible.

As a six-term congressman known for sticking to his word, Jeffries is a respected and admired politician in the Democratic Party.

Payne said Jeffries, who represents a “generational turn” in the party, “has shown that he is a truly gifted communicator and communicator.” He added: “He has some different skill sets that other Democrats may not be able to. And I think that’s something that Democrats will really benefit from.

Payne continued if elected Speaker of the House, “(Jeffries) will become the most important Democrat in the country with any power. She is essentially taking over the mantle that Nancy Pelosi took on when she was re-elevated to speaker during Trump’s first presidency.”

But Payne cautioned that even when Democrats manage to amass a razor-thin majority in the House, it’s going to still be an uphill battle.

He noted that the caucus will include many Democrats “from districts where Donald Trump is popular.” “You still have to hold together a club that will come under cross-pressure from Donald Trump, who is more popular than he was four and eight years ago.”

At this point, Plaskett noted that Democrats would want to take a leaf out of her book as a member of Congress representing a U.S. territory.

“I have limited voting rights, so I understand what it means to punch above your weight,” said Plaskett, who said that being a political minority in Congress requires “cooperating with members of the Democratic caucus, as well as the Republican caucus when it is advantageous to do so for the interests of (our) voters.”

Policy

Democrats also see an incredible opportunity to strengthen Black political power in Washington with the elevation of Hakeem Jeffries.

“Him coming out as a black man from Brooklyn and being a major foil for Donald Trump — I think that’s important at a time like this,” Payne said.

But Congressman Clyburn cautions that Jeffries must overcome a few of the challenges Harris faced as the first woman and first person of color to function vice chairman.

“It’s a big burden that needs a lot of help to carry,” said the lawmaker who served as House majority whip and deputy Democratic leader.

“Kamala Harris suffered for this reason. I took it upon myself to check many individuals who kept telling me that she wasn’t this and he or she wasn’t that, she didn’t do that and he or she didn’t try this,” he recalled. “I’d ask them what number of women have been vice presidents before? She took office two months before you criticized her conduct.

As the first speaker of the Black House, Clyburn had doubts that Jeffries could be “allowed to get his sea legs… to master this job from day one.”

Seawright, the Democratic strategist, said Jeffries won’t only be speaker of the House but additionally leader of the entire national party, which he believes must “rebound, learn and grow as the next election cycles approach” in 2025 and 2026. The role Jeffries will play will probably be crucial “whether we win a majority or not.”

After the devastating defeat in the 2024 election, Seawright said Jeffries and other Democratic Party leaders need to rethink their message to voters.

President-elect Donald Trump has named longtime adviser and anti-immigration hardliner Stephen Miller as deputy chief of staff for policy in his recent administration.

Fresh off a tumultuous election cycle, the nation’s eyes now turn to who Trump appoints to his Cabinet and keeps in his inner circles. The announcement of Miller’s nomination comes days after Trump announced that his campaign manager, Susan Wiles, can be his chief of staff.

Miller is a longtime member of Trump’s camp, serving as an in depth aide within the president-elect’s first campaign and a senior adviser in his first White House administration.

He helped shape rigid immigration deterrence policies during Trump’s first term, equivalent to separating migrant children from their parents and implementing a highly controversial travel ban on majority-Muslim countries.

Miller continued to give attention to this issue throughout the ultimate weeks of Trump’s second presidential campaign, assuring Americans of this mass deportations will probably be a top priority once the president-elect returns to office.

Miller made headlines in 2019 after he was discovered sending white nationalist literature and propaganda to news editors on the far-right news organization Breitbart. A former Breitbart author leaked over 900 emails to the location Southern Poverty Law Center revealing that several of Miller’s immigration policy proposals were modeled on extremist source material.

After Trump was removed from office in 2020, Miller founded and led the conservative organization America First Legal, which formed the premise of a broad anti-DEI movement, filing quite a few discrimination lawsuits alleging that “anti-white racism” was rampant in corporations and colleges and universities .

America First Legal was behind the litigation that led last summer to the Supreme Court’s landmark 6-3 decision declaring race-based affirmative motion college admissions policies unconstitutional.

NEW: Donald Trump is anticipated to call Stephen Miller as his deputy chief of staff for policy, in keeping with CNN.

Miller is a robust supporter of secure borders and has repeatedly called for mass deportations.

Miller says he hopes deportations will increase 10-fold to greater than… pic.twitter.com/9gSFO7vcXc

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) November 11, 2024

In 2021, the group also filed a successful lawsuit looking for to dam a $29 billion program for restaurants run by women and minorities from going into effect. The organization argued that this system discriminated against white-owned businesses.

Many Trump supporters reacted positively as news of Miller’s recent White House post began to spread. There are also opposing reactions. CNN political commentator Tara Setmayer bristled on the news of the nomination.

“Well, that is what people voted for. I suggest that many individuals who voted for Donald Trump return and watch Stephen Miller’s many interviews and media appearances. And you see who he’s. He is a vile man, a racist and a xenophobe, and his family has disowned him,” Setmayer said on CNN’s news program Monday.

11/11/24 10:42 ET CNN Press Room Anchor Jim Acosta @acosta With/

CNN Senior Reporter Steve Contorno @stevecontorno

Founder of the Alliance for Black Equality Alvin Tillery

CEO of Seneca Project, @TaraSetmayer

Subject: Appointment of Stephen Miller as Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy pic.twitter.com/u1LcNrszRz

— Jeff Storobinsky (@jeffstorobinsky) November 11, 2024

Adding: “And that’s now who is near power within the White House, mainly number 2, next to Susie Wiles, within the ear of the president of the United States. Well, I suppose the upside is that no less than he won’t be DHS secretary or attorney general.

Miller’s role as deputy chief of staff for policy means he’ll work with Wiles and take responsibility for implementing Trump’s policy proposals.