Which states are most reconciled to police misconduct?
Data from the National Police Funding database decomposed it by total settlement amount, number of fraud cases, and average settlement per case.
New York is the number one state that paid the most in police misconduct settlements for every case of nearly $73 million.
Illinois follows with an average of $20,337,059 per case. Pennsylvania ranks third with $14,798,000 per transaction.
California was the fourth highest, but there was a national comprehensive fraud settlement.
Florida is far better than other states, ranking 21st overall in the survey, with an average settlement of $2,132,500 per person. This was a 64% decrease compared to the national average of $5,930,098. The state handled two cases, totaling $4,265,000.
Bader Scott Law Firm spokesman Seth Bader said these statistics show a significant financial impact of police misconduct cases across the country. High settlement amounts in states like New York and Illinois reflect both the severity and legal precedents of cases established in these jurisdictions.
“States with high settlements may be in response to public pressure on accountability, while also facing unique situations in certain well-known cases that will significantly raise the average,” Bader said.
Bader also shows that these top 10 states are from completely different regions, suggesting that police misconduct is a national issue and not limited to specific areas of the country.
“These important payments may have been money spent on more training for executives to avoid these situations in the first place. I hope this serves as a reminder that these cases are avoidable and should not occur frequently,” Badder said.
