Video Proves Police Lied. Mario Woods was Staggering Away, Not Moving Quickly Towards White Cops When They Shot Black Man 19 Times in 3 Seconds: San Francisco Settles Suit Before Trial

“Government" is simply, unequivocally, and always initiation of force or coercion and nothing else.“

From {HERE] The city of San Francisco on Tuesday settled a high-profile civil rights suit over the 2015 police shooting death of Mario Woods, a 26-year-old black man, just days before a widely anticipated trial was set to start.

Terms of the settlement, which must be approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, will remain confidential for 30 days, according to the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office.

Woods was killed on Dec. 2, 2015, when five officers fired 27 bullets at the knife-wielding suspect – hitting him 21 times – after less lethal beanbag rounds failed to subdue him. An autopsy revealed Woods had methamphetamine and THC in his system when he died, something cops would have no idea of knowing when they encountered him on the street.

A video of the San Francisco police shooting "casts doubt" on officers' accounts that a black man was moving quickly toward them when they shot, a federal judge wrote in a court ruling in October.

The police department initially said Woods had lunged at an officer with a 13-inch kitchen knife before he was shot, but cellphone videos and some eyewitnesses contradict that version of events.

Woods was suspected of stabbing a man when officers found him standing at transit stop. Several officers surrounded Woods in a semicircle and shot him with "non-lethal" rubber bullets after they said he refused to drop a knife, according to depositions.

Videos taken by bystanders show Woods staggering out of the semicircle and sliding his right side against a wall as he tried to walk away and one of the officers scurrying to get in front of him.

At that point, five officers shot Woods a combined 21 times.

The officers testified that they believed Woods was walking quickly toward the officer who was trying to cut him off and that's why they fired.

"Videos cast doubt on the officer accounts that Woods was moving quickly or speeding up when officers shot him," Orrick wrote. "They seem to show him take four slow steps with his right shoulder up against the building, walking with a heavy limp. The knife was in Woods' right hand, on the building side."

Woods’ mother insists her son was in the midst of a mental health crisis and that officers failed to follow their training and use de-escalation tactics before resorting to lethal force.

The shooting sparked series of protests, leading to a federal review of the San Francisco Police Department and changes to its training guidelines and use-of-force policies.

Jury selection for the two-week trial was set to begin Friday, and the trial was scheduled to commence April 1.

Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge William Orrick III denied the city’s request to prevent the jury from hearing a witness exclaim “that was unnecessary” in a video of the police shooting.

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office would not say whether that ruling played a role in its decision to settle the case, but it did defend the five officers accused of excessive force in an emailed statement Tuesday.

Damages for grief and emotional distress are not recoverable in wrongful death suits under California law, but Woods’ mother sought damages for “the loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society, and moral support.”

Her attorney, John Burris, did not immediately respond to an email request for an interview, but the civil rights attorney has previously said that his client was seeking “substantial” damages for the death of her son.