Sean Bell, 23 was enjoying a bachelors night out the day before his wedding when he and his two friends were shot outside a nightclub in Queens. An altercation occurred and the unarmed Bell died on the scene while his two friends were seriously wounded. The community was outraged and his fiancee, Nicole Paultre Bell, made it clear that the NYPD would pay for his untimely death.
The three police officers involved were indicted on multiple charges in 2007, but although they fired 50 shots (even taking a pause to reload their guns) on unarmed black men, they were acquitted on all charges the following year. After years of protesting and filing a civil suit against the City of New York, Paultre Bell and the families of the two victims finally got what they were due– $7 million to be exact.
Michael Cardozo, attorney for the New York City Law Department said, “The city regrets the loss of life in this tragic case, and we share our deepest condolences with the Bell family.” “We hope that all parties can find some measure of closure by this settlement.”
