Cleveland Settles for $2.25 Million in Ficker Case

The City of Cleveland has reached a $2.25 million settlement with the family of a Parma man, Daniel Ficker, shot and killed by Cleveland Police in 2011. The family filed a civil suit on claims of excessive force. Ficker's mother, Bernadette Rolen, said the settlement comes after a difficult five and a half years of litigation.

"I never stopped fighting," she said. "My son was only 27. He didn’t deserve to die like that, so unexpectedly by two police officers who shouldn’t have been doing what they were doing."

The Cleveland police officers, one off-duty and one on-duty, confronted Ficker outside his home in Parma. The wife of the off-duty officer had accused Ficker of stealing jewelry during a party. A fight broke out, and the on-duty policeman fatally shot Ficker. Both officers were eventually cleared of wrong-doing, and no longer work in the Cleveland police department.

As part of the settlement, the city agreed to implement a new policy that requires a supervisor to travel with an officer on calls to other jurisdictions.