Pittsburgh could pay $52,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by a teacher who was thrown in jail by a Pittsburgh police officer as he was leaving a community meeting in Homewood on charges that later were dropped.
The proposed settlement was introduced at city council Tuesday and will include several changes to police policy and procedures if approved, said Sara Rose, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney who represented Dennis Henderson, 39. The ACLU called it a racially motivated false arrest and a clear-cut case of police misconduct.
“He’s a teacher, and he works with young, predominantly African-American students,” Ms. Rose said. “He’s concerned about what would happen if they were put in the same situation he was put in.”
