The city of Aurora has agreed to a $1.9 million settlement after law enforcement officers were captured on camera holding a Black family at gunpoint, local station KUSA reports.

The viral video from August 2020 showed police holding Brittney Gilliam along with her two daughters and two nieces were forced on the ground by police after pulling them from a car they believed was stolen. While the license plate number was the same, the state of the license plate was different.  The stolen vehicle had a Montana license plate but Giliiam’s car had Colorado plates, according to CBS News.

During the footage, Giliam’s children can be heard screaming while the officers on the scene ordered them “to get on the ground with their hands on their heads.”

The video of the incident garnered outrage across the country, as thousands took to the streets to protest the murder of George Floyd at hands of police officers.

At the time, Vanessa Wilson, the former chief of police of the Aurora Police Department apologized to Gilliam and offered counseling to the children that the city would pay for. She also said that officers needed “to use discretion in how they handle traffic stops.”

Eventually, Gilliam retained the legal services of David Lane and filed a lawsuit against the City of Aurora and the officers who apprehended her family alleging excessive force. 

The suit was the first to be filed under Colorado’s police accountability law which allows claims of excessive force to proceed in state court.

In a statement, Lane confirmed the settlement and wants law enforcement to be held accountable for racial profiling.

"Our hope is that police officers all over the country learn that law enforcement needs to use common sense, especially when dealing with children.  A robocop mentality will lead to huge liability.  We believe that inexcusable racial profiling was involved in this case as well,” Lane’s statement read.  “When the race of the occupants of a vehicle causes guns to be drawn, a line has been crossed which will result in huge consequences for the police.  Hopefully, this settlement will lead to changes in how police departments handle situations like this in the future."

The suit was the first to be filed under Colorado’s police accountability law which allows claims of excessive force to proceed in state court.

This is just the latest high-profile incident involving police officers and Black citizens in the city of Aurora. On August 24, 2019, Elijah McClain after officers tackled and placed him in a chokehold. When first responders were called to the scene, they injected him with ketamine. On his way to the hospital, he suffered a heart attack. After spending several days in the hospital, he was pronounced dead on August 30, 2019.

Sheneen McClain, Elijah’s mother filed the lawsuit in 2020 and named the city of Aurora and the police officers and fire department members involved in the death of her son. 

The city of Aurora settled a federal civil rights lawsuit over the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, for $15 million in November 2021.

In response to the settlement,  Matt Brown of the Aurora police department issued a statement.

"The Aurora Police Department remains committed to strengthening the relationship with the community through accountability and continuously improving how it serves the public," Brown said in the statement.