COMMENTARY | About one month before Mayor Donna Deegan took office last summer, City Hall attorneys indicated they were interested in settling a federal lawsuit over the death of Jamee Johnson , a 22-year-old Florida A&M University student killed during the course of a traffic stop in 2019, according to a legal memo that has not been previously reported.
The memo, dated May 26, 2023, notified the attorney representing Johnson’s parents that although city lawyers stood by the actions of Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officer Josue Garriga, they also “recognize the potential costs” of continuing litigation and were planning to meet in the coming days “with the goal of resolving this conflict and reaching a reasonable agreement.” That meeting was slated to include Garriga, the officer, and took place May 30, according to the document. By July, both sides had agreed to a $200,000 settlement — significantly less than the $5 million Johnson’s parents had originally sought.
That timeline gives lie to a narrative that has developed around the settlement, which Sheriff T.K. Waters publicly objected to months later and prompted him to ask the Jacksonville City Council for a change in local law that would give him veto power over such settlements in the future. During debate around that proposed change this past week, City Council President Ron Salem cast blame on Deegan’s administration for the purported breakdown in communication with Waters’ office.