The family of a 26 year-old woman shot and killed by Madison police has been awarded $7 million after a federal jury found officers used unreasonable force against her.
In May 2014, Madison police responded to Ashley DiPiazza’s apartment, where she locked herself in her bedroom with a gun after a fight with her boyfriend. About 45 minutes after officers arrived, she emerged from the room holding a gun to her head and ignored commands to drop her weapon. That’s when officers shot her.
In the civil lawsuit, DiPiazza’s family argued the officers violated her constitutional rights to an unreasonable seizure, adding she was never a threat to anyone but herself.
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A federal jury agreed and found former officers Justin Bailey and Gary Pihlaja used unreasonable force against DiPiazza.
The jury found officer Carey Leerek, who was negotiating with DiPiazza during the situation, held no responsibility since she did not know the other two officers were going to use unreasonable force against DiPiazza and she did not have an opportunity to stop them.
The jury awarded the DiPiazza family $4 million for compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages.
The officers had previously been cleared by their department and the Dane County district attorney, arguing they were in imminent danger.
Madison City Attorney Michael May said in a statement Friday he’s “extremely disappointed” in the jury’s decision, adding he concluded the officers “acted within the legal standards for use of force.”
The city’s insurance policy will cover the damages awarded to the DiPiazza family.
This is the third lawsuit related to a Madison officer-involved shooting in recent years. In February 2017, the family of Tony Robinson received $3.35 million in the 2015 death of the 19 year-old. The city also settled with the family of Paul Heenan in August 2015, paying $2.3 million for the fatal shooting of the musician in 2012.
May said he’ll meet with attorneys to see if there are grounds for an appeal.
In a statement, Madison Police Chief Mike Koval extended the department’s “deepest sympathies to Ms. DiPiazza’s family and friends,” and said they accept the ruling but also re-emphasized that the officers involved were cleared of wrongdoing by both state and departmental investigations.
DiPiazza family attorney Andrea Farrell did not respond to an email or call for comment by deadline.
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