County reaches $1.5 million settlement in Elio Carrion shooting case
Pictured (L-R): Ivory Webb and Elio Carrion
Attorneys for San Bernardino County have reached a $1.5 million settlement agreement with an Air Force sergeant who was shot three times by a sheriff's deputy following a high-speed chase in 2006.
Elio Carrion has agreed to dismiss his civil lawsuit against the county as part of the settlement reached Monday, which must be approved by the Board of Supervisors before it's final, said Dana Fox, an attorney for the county.
"The settlement was fair," said Luis A. Carrillo, Carrion's attorney. "That's all I can say."
Following the videotaped and widely publicized shooting in Chino of the unarmed Carrion, prosecutors charged the deputy, Ivory Webb, with two felonies, including attempted voluntary manslaughter.
Webb was the first police officer in at least three decades to be charged criminally in San Bernardino County in connection with an on-duty shooting. He was acquitted by a jury.
"I think it is a fair and reasonable resolution of the case," Fox said. "I think Mr. Carrion is to be admired for the way in which he carried himself throughout this, and for his recovery.
"Everyone at the county and the sheriff's department wishes him nothing but the best in the future."
On Jan. 29, 2006, Carrion, an Iraq War veteran who then had attained the rank of senior airman, was a passenger in a car that led sheriff's deputies on a high-speed chase that ended at about 10 p.m. on Francis Street in Chino.
Following the end of the chase, video footage shot by a bystander appeared to show Carrion lying on the ground beside the vehicle.
Webb, who had taken out his handgun, ordered Carrion to get up. When Carrion made a move to stand up, Webb shot him three times.
None of the bullets hit Carrion's vital organs, his spinal column, or his head, Carrillo said.
"He could have died that cold evening," Carrillo said. "But his angel was looking out for him."
Webb, 48, was suspended following the shooting, and left the department a few weeks later. Following Webb's acquittal, the sheriff's department said it would not welcome him back.
Webb filed for bankruptcy protection last year, and was dismissed as a plaintiff in Carrion's civil lawsuit in May because of his bankruptcy.
Webb could still potentially face federal criminal charges for allegedly violating Carrion's civil rights in the course of the shooting.
The statute of limitations for a potential federal action against Webb will expire in January 2011, five years from the date of the incident.
The Board of Supervisors is tentatively scheduled to consider the settlement agreement with Carrion on Aug. 18, Fox said.
The county has an insurance policy making it liable for no more than $1 million of the expenses incurred in the course of Carrion's litigation, including attorneys fees and the settlement, Fox said.
The county's insurer is responsible for paying anything in excess of the county's $1-million share, Fox said.
Carrion, 25, who is still in the Air Force and stationed in Louisiana, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Carrillo said Carrion's wife gave birth to a boy on Friday, and Carrion's family is preoccupied with their newborn child.
The attorney said he has not spent a lot of time discussing the settlement with Carrion.
"He approved the settlement, so I interpret that to mean he's fine with the settlement," Carrillo said.
that ex-cop needs to be shot three times by the kid he shot he will not be punished at all for his actions he is a total piece of sh#t
I am shocked that former deputy Webb was found not guilty. The shooting was caught on tape and clearly shows Carrion following the deputy's order to "get up!" He even shouted this command twice just before he pulled the trigger. Carrion even tells the deputy, "okay, I'm gettin up." Obviously he's letting the deputy know what he's about to do, so he doesn't get shot. But it happens anyway.
The jury concluded that one of the reasons they found Webb not guilty was because it appeared on the tape that Carrion was reaching for something in his pocket and that he lunged at the deputy, right before he was shot 3 times. But if you watch the tape, that is totally false. The tape shows Carrion putting his hands down on the ground to push himself up. What in the hell was the jury looking at? I have to believe that at least 1 or 2 jurors thought Webb was guilty but were probably pressured by the others to change their decisions. Either that or this jury need to have their eyes checked!
half that money should go to the camera man. If not for him, cops would have gotten away with this, And SSG Carrion would have gotten charged with attempted murder of a police officer, on top of the speeding and DUI.
Do what U Gotta Do!? I demand justice!