A Black man by the name of Jaleel Stallings will be awarded $1.5 million, plus attorneys’ fees from the City of Minneapolis in connection to events surrounding a May 2020 arrest.

During the civil unrest following the death of George Floyd, bodycam footage showed police in an unmarked vehicle shooting less-lethal ammunition at Stallings. Because the officers were not easily identified as law enforcement, Stallings fired back, claiming self-defense.

In a lawsuit filed last year against the City of Minneapolis and 19 of its cops, the victim stated that authorities used excessive force and then proceeded to file false police reports.

Stallings added that once he knew that the original shots came from the police, he placed his firearm down and surrendered. His actions did not stop him from being assaulted by the officers.

“Despite his surrender, officers beat him for approximately 30 seconds. Nearby officers watched and did nothing to stop the beating,” the lawsuit read.

In the bodycam footage, the police can be seen beating the victim and yelling at him to “put [his] hands behind [his] back” as Stallings lays on the ground saying that “[he’s] trying.”

Last year he was acquitted of the charges in the 2020 arrest.

On Tuesday (May 17), Stallings recalled the incident noting that “It’s been a nightmare dealing with different stages of depression.” He added, “A lot of the bruising was gone within a month, the eye fracture took a little longer.”

Stallings claims that a payday was never his motive. “I’m extremely satisfied and grateful for that but I’m disappointed because my purpose in filing a civil lawsuit was never money. I want justice and I wanted accountability,” he said.

An attorney for the City of Minneapolis said, “The City Attorney’s Office, after consultation with the City Council, served on the Plaintiff, in this case, a Federal Rule 68 Offer of Judgment in the amount of $1.5 million. The plaintiff accepted this judgment. The City hopes that an early resolution to this matter will allow all of the parties to move forward.”