Friday, March 1st 2024, 10:11 pm
A federal court awarded more than $7 million to a man whose wife was an innocent citizen killed in a high-speed pursuit in Tahlequah in 2018.
Police say it happened after Aram Catron shoplifted about $100 worth of items from the Walmart in Tahlequah and when confronted by security, dropped the items, jumped in his truck and took off.
A Cherokee Nation Deputy Marshal spotted Catron and tried to pull him over.
Police say Catron refused to pull over and sped up and was doing 80 when he ran a stop sign and slammed into Malinda Phillips' SUV and even though she was wearing a seatbelt, she did not survive.
The ruling says the Marshal violated the Nation's policy that says pursuits should only take place for serious felonies and violated a state law that says law enforcement can speed only if it does not endanger life or property.
Catron is serving a 26-year sentence for manslaughter.
The Nation says the Marshal still works for them and they are reviewing the ruling.
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