Family of teen killed by police file $150M lawsuit against Cobb County
The family of 17-year-old Vincent Truitt has filed a $150 million lawsuit against Cobb County and the officer who fatally shot the teen.
Truitt was fatally shot twice in the back on July 13, 2020, after a police chase, AJC reported. The bodycam footage showed the teen getting out of a stolen Nissan Altima with a gun before running away from Officer Max Karneol according to ABC News. Karneol got a gun at the scene after fatally shooting the teen. Now, almost two years later, the teen’s family has filed a lawsuit.
On Jan. 11, the family filed a $150 million wrongful death lawsuit in federal court. Lawyer Gerald Griggs say the lawsuit is believed to be the most money sought in a deadly police shooting in Georgia’s history.
A grand jury deliberated the case in February 2021 after eight hours decided Karneol was within his rights to use deadly force when he killed Truitt, Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady Jr. said.
However, according to the 30-page lawsuit, Truitt was picked up by a friend that night and didn’t know that the car was stolen.
Griggs says a Texas case where a shooting was ruled justified by the local district attorney before a jury ended up awarding the man’s family $67 million in a federal civil trial, 11 Alive reports.
“At the time Truitt was shot, his back was turned and did not pose a physical threat of harm,” to the officer, the suit says.
The suit calls out the police department for failing to train officers correctly.
Officers in the department “received deficient oversight and training in the use of force and firearms that did not adequately address the prevention of excessive force by the intentional discharges of firearms in situations where other non-lethal means of force was required in detaining suspects.”
The lawsuit is seeking $50 million for Truitt’s mother, $50 million for his father, and $50 million for his estate as damages. Since the incident Karneol has returned to active duty with the Cobb County Police Department.