*The teenage girl who was slammed to the ground by a McKinney, Texas police officer during a pool party in 2015 has settled her federal suit against the officer involved, the city and the police department.
Three years ago, video of the incident went viral, and in it, officer Eric Casebolt was seen forcibly detaining a teenage Dejerria Becton, as she was wearing a bathing suit.
Casebolt was initially placed on administrative leave before he eventually resigned. Afterward, Becton sued the city and last month was awarded a $148,000 settlement.
It’s worth noting that Casebolt was previously sued for racial discrimination, excessive force and sexual assault before this incident with Becton.
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Becton is going to use some of the settlement money to throw a pool party to celebrate the settlement as well as her graduation, her attorney Kim T. Cole told Teen Vogue.
“This girl will never be the same,” Cole noted. “Anyone who has been a teenage black girl knows how hard it is, and to have this type of negative publicity, in your bikini, shown all over the world. It tore her up. We don’t know who she would have been had this not happened.”
Mayor George Fuller referred to Becton as a verbally abusive, disobedient girl throughout the ordeal.
Her attorney said in response, “You’re not afraid of white people who pose an actual threat, who walk out of shooting up a church or a school without a scratch on them, but you are afraid of a black girl and her ‘tone’?” Cole said. “Watch the video – she never used a cuss word, never talked back to him – all she did was repeatedly ask someone to call her mama.”
The party will be held today, Saturday, June 23. Activists DeRay McKesson and Shaun King have been invited.
Cole also plans to raise money for scholarships for the teens who were detained that day.
You can send donations here:
Kim T. Cole, 2770 Main Street, Suite 186, Frisco, Texas 75033.
Becton plans to attend community college this fall and wants to use the settlement money to start her own business. She reportedly aspires to become a dentist.
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