What a six-figure lawsuit settlement after 2022 killing by Milford Police doesn't tell us

A wrongful death lawsuit filed against City of Milford police officers who killed a man suffering from an apparent mental crisis in 2022 was settled earlier this year with a six-figure payout to the man's children, according to public records.

Brandon Roberts was killed by Milford officers Cpl. Nigel Golding and Patrolman Patrick Karpin as they responded to a series of domestic dispute calls from the residence he shared with his domestic partner.

The settlement follows a familiar pattern: Delaware police kill someone, their supervisory authorities dispute any wrongdoing, the victims' family file a lawsuit seeking accountability and the litigation ends with a settlement paid by a municipal insurance provider and a gag order about the case for municipal authorities and family members party to the settlement.

It's likely costs will be passed along to municipal taxpayers through higher insurance premiums, though that is unclear as of now.

In Roberts' case, his domestic partner warned dispatchers that Roberts suffered from mental disabilities and was armed with a kitchen knife. After he was killed by officers, his family sued in federal court, claiming police escalated the situation to one that was fatal, employed excessive force and disregarded the man's mental disabilities.

Public records obtained by Delaware Online/The News Journal show the lawsuit was withdrawn earlier this year in response to a settlement agreement naming the officers, as well as Selective Insurance Company of South Carolina, which provides insurance services to the city.

The agreement is signed by Roberts' mother, as well as the guardian of his children, and agrees to dismiss liability in return for about $775,000. About $170,000 of that was immediately owed to the family's attorney and the rest will be disbursed as staggered payments to Roberts' two children starting when they turn 18 until they are 30 years old.

How Brandon Roberts was killed

On a Sunday in January 2020, Roberts called 911 to report a domestic dispute. He made incoherent statements before handing the phone over to his domestic partner, who lived with him and their infant child and was pregnant with his infant child.

Jones didn’t want to provide their apartment number because she was concerned that Roberts would exit with a knife, according to previous reporting, the state Department of Justice and the lawsuit.

However, Robert disclosed their address in the background while she spoke to the operator. He also made comments the operator could hear, including that he had a machete, an AK-47, a bomb and that he was associated with the foreign terrorist group ISIS.

Video and audio: Family of Brandon Roberts files federal lawsuit claiming wrongful death by Milford police

The operator also heard him say that he loved his partner and that “y’all are going to have to shoot me because I’m not going to jail.”

His partner told the operator there was only a “house knife” in the residence and said he had hit her. The last thing Jones said to the dispatcher before police arrived was, “Please take it easy on him because he is bipolar and he is schizophrenic. And yes, he does have a mental disability, anxiety and a lot of other problems that we don’t know yet.”

Golding and Karpin approached the apartment with guns drawn. Roberts partially opened the door and then closed it as they ordered him to raise his hands. His family’s lawsuit claims the officers forced the door open.

What happens next is disputed. The police claimed that Roberts raised the knife and walked toward them. The lawsuit claims he never raised the knife. The two officers shot him eight times. Video released by authorities after the shooting shows less than five seconds passed between the time he first opened the door and Roberts was gunned down.

“Oh, my God, they really shot him,” Jones said, and the dispatcher hung up.

Accountability?

When Roberts was killed, police officers could kill someone and escape legal consequences if they stated they believed themselves or someone else to be in imminent danger at the time.

Since then, the law has been changed to where prosecutors must judge whether that belief would be reasonable in the eyes of an officer in a similar situation. Delaware police kill people every year, but no officer has ever been criminally prosecuted for such.

In Roberts’ case, prosecutors said the officers committed no crime, citing statements that they believed they were in danger. The lawsuit accused them of escalating a situation that shouldn’t have been deadly to one that was fatal.

In a written statement, Milford Police Sgt. Timothy Maloney, a spokesperson for Chief Cecilia Ashe, said the department conducted an internal review of the officers’ actions and found that they violated no department policy and were not disciplined for killing Roberts.

Golding is still employed at the department, while Karpin left the department in good standing, according to previous statements by department officials.

Maloney declined further comment on the case.

Grim cost of doing police business

While Milford Police and state prosecutors may have determined the officers’ actions were within policy and not criminal, civil attorneys for the city and its insurers opted for a three-quarter-million-dollar payout rather than having a jury look at the evidence and potentially decide damages in court.

However, such settlements leave any discussion of accountability wanting.

The settlement makes clear that the payout is to dismiss “disputed” claims and is not an admission of liability. In Robert’s case, and in the case of all police settlements in recent years, the parties agree to a non-disclosure agreement that bars them from disclosing the settlement publicly. Additionally, commenting on the case itself will jeopardize the payout or agreement.

Attorneys for Roberts’ family declined to comment. Critics say such gag orders stifle discussion and accountability. Police interests say it cuts off critical rhetoric.

While the parties may not comment, Delaware law does provide that the public has a right to view municipal lawsuit settlements, which is how Delaware Online/The News Journal obtained the Roberts' settlement.

The lack of public closure and accountability as well as the involvement of insurers are common themes in police killings in Delaware.

Several municipalities carry insurance for police violence, or more commonly police car crashes. In most cases, attorneys that typically represent the city take a backseat to attorneys hired by the insurance company in deciding how to proceed with the case, as well as when and how much to settle for.

In some cases, the municipality will have a deductible it must pay before coverage kicks in, and, like any insurance, claims can cause a rise in annual premiums for coverage.

Recent: Delaware agencies paid out more than $3M in 3 years for injuries by police. Here's why

In Milford’s case, it is unclear how much the city pays Selective Insurance Company of South Carolina annually for such coverage. It is also unclear if a deductible was part of the payout.

A 2023 examination of police settlements by Delaware Online/The News Journal found that government entities or their insurers had paid more than $3 million in three years to settle litigation tied to police crashes and violence.

Contact Xerxes Wilson at (302) 324-2787 or xwilson@delawareonline.com.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: What a six-figure lawsuit settlement after 2022 killing by Milford Police doesn't tell us