The City of Derby agreed to settle an excessive force lawsuit in March.
DERBY-SHELTON — A settlement to a police excessive force lawsuit approved by the legislative bodies in Derby and Shelton has not been finalized because the plaintiff won’t sign the agreement, according to court papers filed by the defendants’ lawyers.
However, the plaintiff’s lawyer filed response papers saying Derby and Shelton should just pay the money because the settlement doesn’t require a sign-off by the plaintiff.
The amount of money Derby and Shelton agreed to pay is being kept secret at this time.
Plaintiff Linda Mehaylo filed a federal lawsuit in December 2019, claiming that her civil rights were violated by the use of excessive force by a Derby officer and two officers from Shelton.
Mehaylo allegedly left the scene of a minor motor vehicle accident in Derby in February 2017, and was quickly confronted at her residence in Shelton by investigating officers from Derby and Shelton.
Police alleged she would not come out of her residence. Officers eventually grabbed Mehaylo and took her into custody. Police said she resisted. Mehaylo said police used excessive force by turning her upside down and throwing her into a police vehicle, where she hit her head.
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The police officers made a motion for summary judgement in the case, arguing that no excessive force was used and that the officers were protected by qualified immunity, a law that protects public employees from being sued for doing their jobs.
However, a federal judge didn’t agree with police, saying that Mehaylo showed some cooperation with police and questioning whether the amount of force was justified by the relatively minor criminal offense police were investigating.
The defendant’s motion for summary judgement — which would have ended the case — was rejected, at which point the lawyers representing Derby and Shelton opted to work out a settlement deal with Mehaylo for an unspecified amount of money.
The terms of the settlement were hammered out during a conference with the judge and the lawyers in February.
The Shelton Aldermen approved the deal Feb. 13, according to court papers.
The Derby Board of Aldermen & Alderwomen approved the settlement without providing any details on March 13.
“Plaintiff’s refusal to sign has halted progress towards completion,” according to a motion filed on behalf of the police officers on May 30.
The two Shelton officers named in the federal lawsuit are Manuel Dominguez and Daniel Loris. The Derby officer is Frank DeAngelo.
The May 30 defense motion asked a judge to intervene and enforce the settlement agreement.
John Williams, the attorney representing Mehaylo, said all parties agreed to the terms of the settlement. They don’t need his client’s signature, he wrote
“The defendants’ only complaint here is that the plaintiff has refused to sign a release,” Williams wrote. “Since that was not a requirement of the settlement, the motion should be denied. The defendants have obtained permission from their respective municipalities to pay the sum agreed upon; the settlement agreement provided that upon payment the action would be dismissed. It is now up to the defendants to carry out their agreement to make the payments.”
A judge could make a ruling in the May 30 defense motion this week.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs and defense did not return emails for comment.
