While admitting no wrongdoing, the city of Pevely agreed to pay $300,000 to Robert Golden Jr. to settle a lawsuit he filed against the city alleging that three police officers beat him, leaving him bruised and swollen.
The alleged beating occurred in November 2016, and Golden and his parents filed the lawsuit against the three police officers and the city in January 2017, in the U.S. Eastern District Court of Missouri in St. Louis.
Golden signed off on the settlement agreement on July 26, and it was finalized Sept. 6, when Magistrate Judge David D. Noce signed the last of two dismissals in the case, according to court records.
Pevely city officials did not respond to requests for comment about the settlement.
However, the city provided the Leader with a copy of the settlement agreement after the paper submitted a Sunshine Law request for it.
Golden wouldn’t comment about the settlement either, but his attorney, J.C. Pleban, said he was happy with the settlement.
“I think it was a good result for him in the case,” Pleban said. “The only other thing we would like to see would be some disciplinary action, but there’s nothing you can do about that in a civil suit.”
The city’s insurance company paid the settlement, Pleban said. “It was just a lump sum payment to the Goldens,” he said.
In the suit, Golden claimed that three police officers – Tony Moutray, who is now the Pevely Police chief, Kyle Weiss and Brian Benjamin – violated his civil rights and injured him. All three were named as defendants in the suit, as was the city of Pevely. Moutray said he could not comment about the matter, and the other two officers could not be reached for comment.
Although the settlement agreement is dated July 26, it was not finalized until Judge Noce signed two dismissals – a “Consent Dismissal With Prejudice of Moutray, Weiss and Benjamin” on Aug. 29 and a “Consent Dismissal With Prejudice of City of Pevely” on Sept. 6.
Moutray, Weiss and Benjamin are described as “officers” in the suit, but Moutray was promoted to captain and assumed police chief duties Oct. 1, 2016, and then was promoted to police chief on April 9.
The settlement agreement states that “in consideration” of the city’s payment of $300,000 to Golden, he has “released, acquitted and discharged” the city of Pevely and the three officers from any future claims in connection with the lawsuit.
The settlement also says:
■ Each party will pay its own attorney fees.
■ Golden agrees the city’s settlement payment “includes within the payment of sums adequate to satisfy any and all bills, debts, liens and/or medical expenses, which have been incurred or which may in the future be asserted” in connection with the incident.
■ The defendants (city of Pevely, Moutray, Weiss and Benjamin) “hereby expressly and emphatically deny any and all liability in connection with the claims of plaintiff based on the incident . . . The parties agree that this compromise is being made for the purpose of finally resolving releasor’s claims and obtaining peace of mind regarding the disputed events.”
In the lawsuit, Golden sought compensatory damages for “physical injury and suffering, medical expenses and his emotional pain and suffering,” and punitive damages and legal expenses.
The suit alleged that on Nov. 12, 2016, Golden was driving a 1995 Chevrolet Silverado with three passengers in his vehicle and stopped at the Pevely Express I-55 Mart Motor Plaza, 1707 Hwy. Z.
He then drove east on Hwy. Z before turning south on Commercial Boulevard (Hwy. 61-67).
The suit claims Golden noticed a vehicle, later identified as a Dodge Intrepid, following extremely close.
The suit said Golden pulled his vehicle over to the side of the road just before the bridge over Joachim Creek when “a single red light came on in the front dash of the Intrepid.” He was not aware of any laws he had broken warranting a police stop, according to the suit.
The suit alleged the three officers came out of the Intrepid, guns drawn, but “had nothing to denote their position of law enforcement.”
“Out of fear for his safety of his life, plaintiff pulled away from the stop and continued” south on Commercial, the suit said.
Approximately 1.5 miles later, Golden saw a marked Herculaneum Police car parked on the Twin City Honda-Suzuki lot, 1539 Commercial Blvd., and stopped there to seek assistance, according to the suit.
“Plaintiff became confused when the Herculaneum officer was pointing his weapon at the plaintiff,” the suit said.
Golden alleged he was “forcibly and roughly ripped out of the truck by defendants Weiss and Benjamin. Simultaneously, his back passenger window was bashed out by defendant Moutray.”
In addition, Golden claimed that Weiss and Benjamin threw him to the ground and while they handcuffed him, struck him in the legs, body and head.
Golden alleged that Moutray forced him to yell “self-demeaning vulgarities” and “the assault on Golden lasted for three to four minutes and only stopped because other officers arrived on scene.”
In addition, the suit claimed that Golden did not resist arrest and that nothing illegal was found in his vehicle.
The suit said Golden suffered a number of physical injuries from the incident, including a swollen face, a severely bruised torso and groin area, and neck pain, and was later taken by his parents to Mercy Hospital Jefferson in Crystal City “to report the assault and be evaluated for injuries.”
The suit was scheduled to go to trial Oct. 22, 2018, but it was dismissed as part of the settlement.