The Phoenix City Council on Wednesday signed off on nearly $800,000 in legal settlements tied to separate lawsuits involving the city’s Police and Fire departments. The votes authorized a $220,000 payout in a police-related claim and a $605,000 payment in a Fire Department case, with the items passing quietly and without comment from councilmembers during the meeting.
According to KJZZ, court records show the police settlement resolves a 2023 case in which an officer believed to be driving an undercover vehicle allegedly ran a stop sign downtown and collided with another person, who was severely injured. The Fire Department settlement, as described in the same reporting, stems from a 2024 lawsuit filed after a man died when a crew reportedly dropped him while carrying him to an ambulance in an office chair instead of using a gurney.
The payments appeared on the City of Phoenix’s formal agenda. The meeting packet lists the case numbers and asks the council to authorize payment under Phoenix City Code Chapter 42, according to the City of Phoenix.
What the filings allege
The court documents summarized in media reporting describe the 2023 crash as involving an officer operating what was thought to be an undercover vehicle that failed to stop at a sign in downtown Phoenix, causing severe injuries to the other person involved. The same filings state that in 2024 a Fire Department response relied on an improvised carry, with the patient transported in an office chair, and that the person was dropped and later pronounced dead. These characterizations are drawn from court records outlined by KJZZ.
Council votes and budget context
The approvals add to a string of settlement votes this year. A roughly $200,000 payout in March was previously reported in connection with a police-cruiser crash, and last October the council approved a $5.2 million settlement in a separate crash case, according to FOX 10 Phoenix. Together, those votes factor into the ongoing liability and risk-management decisions the city must account for in its budgeting…