From [HERE] Indianapolis has agreed to pay $390,000 to settle a lawsuit by the mother of Dreasjon Reed almost three years after he was fatally shot by police following a vehicle pursuit.

Demetree Wynn sued the city on behalf of her son’s estate in June 2020, about a month after Reed's death. She brought multiple claims against the city and police, arguing that Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Officer De’Joure Mercer used excessive force when he shot Reed after a vehicle chase gave way to a foot pursuit.

Indianapolis police and the city deny any liability. The settlement does not stand as an admission of wrongdoing, the agreement states.

A 2020 grand jury investigation guided by white liberal prosecutors into Mercer found there wasn't enough probable cause to charge him with a crime. Following their decision, Indiana State Police presented ballistic and audio evidence to the public that they say shows Mercer and Reed exchanged gunfire right before Reed was killed.

In direct contrast surveillance video obtained by WRTV shows the moments leading up to the death of Dreasjon Reed. The video, which is about 24 seconds in length, shows Reed stopping his vehicle behind ACE Lock & Key near 62nd Street and Michigan Road after leading police on a long chase — which he was also streaming on Facebook Live.

Reed can be seen getting out of his vehicle and running with what appears to be a white t-shirt in his left hand and two cell phones in his right hand, while metro police officer Dejoure Mercer comes running after him.

WRTV stated “WRTV reviewed the surveillance video several times, using our technology to slow down, enhance, and view the footage frame-by-frame. We are reporting what we can see in Dreasjon Reed’s hands after we enhanced the video. We can see a t-shirt in his left hand, and two cell phones in his right hand. We know these are cell phones because when synced with his Facebook Live stream, you see the sky, the ground, and the individual as he runs from police.)”

“How in the world could you shoot if you had a t-shirt in one hand and a phone in the other? There is no way. You can’t … You can’t shoot someone,” Wynn said. [MORE]

Judge kept some details from the pending trial

The settlement comes less than a month before the lawsuit was set to go to trial. Days before a settlement notice was submitted to the court at the end of January, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana approved requests from both sides to shield certain pieces of evidence from landing before a jury.

The city won its request to keep any reference to the 2020 grand jury investigation into Mercer out of the trial. It also won its request to bar statements made by IMPD Officer Steven Scott, who was suspended from IMPD for several days after a recorded comment he made about Reed's body at the scene of the shooting: “I think it’s going to be closed casket, homie.”

In October 2020 the court threw out Wynn's emotional distress claim against Scott, leaving instead the claims against Mercer and the city.

Another piece of evidence that the jury would have never heard about: after the shooting IMPD Deputy Chief Kendale Adams – one of the officers who initiated the vehicle pursuit of Reed – said he delivered a $100 check to Reed’s mom to help cover her son’s burial expenses.

The check was delivered on behalf of the local non-profit 100 Black Men of Indianapolis, a youth development organization. But the city argued there’s no evidence the check was ever cashed.