San Diego agrees to pay $30m to family of boy, 16, shot dead by police

San Diego Family Secures $30m Settlement After Teen Boy Fatally Shot by Police

In a shocking turn of events, the city of San Diego has agreed to pay a staggering $30 million settlement to the family of Konoa Wilson, a 16-year-old boy who was fatally shot in the back by a police officer while running away from another shooting at a train station. The payout comes after Wilson's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city, claiming that the officer who shot him acted with "racial violence" due to his identity as a half-Black teenager.

The settlement is considered one of the largest in response to a police shooting in the United States, following in the footsteps of Minneapolis, which agreed to pay $27 million to George Floyd's family after he was killed during an arrest. According to Wilson's family attorneys, the 16-year-old boy had been previously targeted by gangsters who had attacked him multiple times, leaving him with serious injuries.

In a tragic series of events, another teenager approached Wilson at the Santa Fe station and started shooting, prompting Wilson to run away from the gunfire. As he fled, he passed by officer Daniel Gold, who promptly shot him in the back as he ran by within seconds. The police body-worn camera footage and surveillance tape captured the incident, showing Gold identifying himself as a police officer only after opening fire.

The civil lawsuit filed on behalf of Wilson's family alleges that Officer Gold acted with "racial violence" by shooting at a Black teenager who was running away without threatening him or brandishing a weapon. The suit claims that due to systemic racism and Gold's perception of Wilson as a Black person, he was deprived of his life and liberty.

According to Nicholas Rowley, the attorney who worked on the settlement, Wilson had been carrying a gun for protection after being previously attacked by gangsters. "The reason why he had a gun is because he is half Black and there were kids, some new gangster kids in San Diego, who had jumped him a few times and hurt him so bad he was in a hospital," Rowley said.

The agreement to the settlement was reportedly made as a business decision and not an admission of liability by the city. The Guardian has contacted the San Diego attorney general's office for comment on this matter.

this is just heartbreaking... 30 mil is a lot, but it's not like its gonna bring back Konoa Wilson or make his family feel whole again . what really hurts me is that this kid was running away from another shooting and the cop just shoots him in the back without even thinking . i mean, can't we have better systems in place to protect our kids? it's not like he was trying to hurt anyone . the fact that they're saying racial violence is a big part of this case makes me really sad... .

man that's crazy $30 million is wild like the system is flawed & we need more ppl speaking out about police brutality I feel bad 4 Konoa he was just a kid running away from another shooting his life was literally cut short & now his family has to live with the pain of it

omg, have you guys tried those new avocado toast places downtown? i swear, they're giving me life! anyway, back to the police shooting thing... like, shouldn't we be focusing on how to prevent these incidents in the first place? instead of just throwing money at it. and what's with all these lawsuits? can't we just have a calm conversation about systemic racism without turning it into a billion-dollar settlement? also, i'm curious... does anyone know if the gun Wilson was carrying was registered or not? that's gotta be an important question right?

man, $30m is crazy ... can u believe how much one life costs? it's like they're saying that having to deal with systemic racism in law enforcement costs too much ... and what's even more messed up is the gun thing, like why does a 16yo need to carry a gun for protection just cuz he's black ... and another thing, can't we just talk about this stuff in peace without getting all litigious

This whole thing is just heartbreaking. I mean, can you even believe that some cop in San Diego had to shoot down a teenager like Konoa Wilson because he was half Black? It's not about the guns or the gangs, it's about systemic racism and how it can lead to a life being taken away in an instant. The fact that the cop didn't even identify himself as police until after shooting is just another layer of messed up. I'm so glad Konoa's family got some justice, but $30m could've been a lot more if this was a federal case...

This is so sad ... 30 million dollars seems like a lot, but its still not enough ... I feel bad for the family, no kid should lose their life because of some crazy situation at a train station ... And it sounds like the police officer thought he was in danger just cuz Konoa was half Black ... I get that police officers are trained to protect us, but thats not an excuse for killing someone who didn't even threaten him ... I hope the city is taking steps to address this systemic racism issue and make sure it doesn't happen again in the future ... San Diego should be super proud of the family for fighting for justice and advocating for change

You know what's crazy, I just saw this ad for a new ice cream flavor and it's like... have you ever noticed how some flavors just don't mesh? Like, pineapple and chocolate together is just weird . And speaking of weird, I was at the park last weekend with my friends and we stumbled upon a street performer who was playing this crazy rendition of "Who Let the Dogs Out?" on the harmonica . Anyway, back to this whole police shooting thing... 30 million bucks is like, a lot . What's even crazier is that some people are saying it's not just about the money, it's about making an example out of the city . I don't know, maybe I'm just reading too much into it .

omg, $30m is like a huge amount of money ... can you even imagine how tough it must be for that family to go through all this? they're already grieving over their son and then the police shooting happened . i feel bad for them that they had to go through so much trauma and now the city has to pay a huge settlement . it's just not right that a 16-year-old boy was shot in the back by a cop while running away from another shooter ... what if he didn't have to run? what if there were other options? anyway, i hope that money helps them find some closure and move on with their lives .

This $30m settlement is like, so sad man... it feels like we're still living in a world where police brutality can happen to anyone, regardless of their background or situation. I mean, 16-year-old Konoa was just trying to survive after being attacked by gangsters and then he got shot by a cop while running away from another shooting... that's not justice, that's a tragedy .

It's crazy that the city is agreeing to pay this massive settlement without admitting any fault. It feels like they're just settling out of court because they don't want bad PR . But for real though, what about the systemic issues that led up to this? What about the racism and biases that got Konoa killed in the first place? We need more than just a payout to fix these problems... we need real change

man that's crazy $30 million is like insane... i feel bad for konoa and his family, it's just so senseless when something like this happens . i'm glad they got some kinda justice, but $30m feels like a lot of money... idk what the city was thinking . and yeah the whole thing with the police officer and the racial stuff is just messed up . it's like, shouldn't we be trying to prevent this kind of thing from happening in the first place?

the system is broken 30 million dollars seems like a drop in the ocean considering what really happened here ... Konoa was just trying to protect himself after being attacked multiple times, and officer gold still goes ahead and shoots him because of his identity the video footage shows it all so clearly... it's not about "racial violence" though some may say that - it's more like systemic racism is real, plain and simple

oh man, $30m is like a lot and i feel bad for konoa's family...it's so sad that he had to go through all that trauma and lose his life and it makes me think about how we need to address police brutality in our communities especially when it comes to racial tensions and systemic racism...the idea that just because someone is black, they're seen as a threat is not only wrong but also hurtful and i wish the city of san diego had taken more steps to prevent this from happening in the first place

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this $30m settlement. It's just crazy that a 16-year-old boy had to go through what Konoa Wilson went through. I mean, think about it - he was being attacked by gangsters and then another kid starts shooting, prompting him to run away. And what happens next? He gets shot in the back by a police officer who is supposed to be protecting him. It's just heartbreaking.

And what really gets me is that there's this whole thing about racial violence and systemic racism going on here. I'm not trying to place blame or anything, but it feels like there are so many variables at play. Like, was the police officer profiling Wilson because of his identity as a half-Black teenager? And if so, what does that say about our society?

I don't know, man... this just feels like so much more than just a tragic accident. It feels like there's a larger issue here that we need to be talking about.

Ugh, can you believe this?! A 16-year-old boy just got shot in the back by a cop while trying to escape from another shooting and now his family is getting $30m . I'm not even going to get into how messed up that cop's story is - some dude gets out of car, shoots people, then runs away and gets caught on camera... but somehow he just happens to shoot a Black kid in the back because... well, you know .

It's like, what even is systemic racism anymore? Is it just something that police officers magically develop after they've made a few questionable calls? Like, this cop, Daniel Gold, he was already pretty sketchy before he shot Konoa, but now we're supposed to believe that his racial biases were somehow triggered by the fact that the kid happened to be Black .

It's all just so... frustrating. Where is accountability for these cops who are supposed to protect and serve? It feels like they're more interested in covering their own backsides than actually doing any real justice .

Ugh, 30 million dollars is crazy! I mean, I get it, Konoa's family deserves some serious compensation after what happened to their son, but $30m feels like a lot . It's just so sad that a 16-year-old got shot and killed by a cop while running away from another shooting . The fact that the officer acted with "racial violence" is really disturbing - it's like he was profiling Konoa just because of his skin color .

I'm not sure if this settlement will help change any systemic issues in San Diego, but I hope it brings some justice to Konoa's family . It's also kinda crazy that the officer didn't even identify himself as a cop until after he shot Konoa - it just goes to show how quickly things can escalate in situations like this .

this is just wrong man... $30m payout is way too much. it feels like cities are getting taken advantage of all the time. konoa wilson was 16, what did he even do to deserve that? running away from some other shooting isn't a crime. and racial violence? that's a huge word, can't they just say he got shot by accident or something? it's not like the cops are always racist, people make mistakes. but i guess this is what happens when you don't have enough cameras in your city...

man this is crazy how can one teen be killed like that? 16 yrs old! what kinda world are we living in where ppl think it's ok to just shoot first and ask questions later? that cop, officer gold, he's a menace plain and simple. I'm so sick of these police shootings and the excuses they always come up with. "he was shot out of fear"... no way, that's not fear, that's racial bias . And what really gets me is that this kid had to carry a gun just because he's black in a city where gangsters have already targeted him multiple times... it's like the system is set up to fail people of color . We need real change, not just some quick cash settlements

man that's just heartbreaking... $30m settlement is a small price to pay for taking away a life, but I guess it's a step in the right direction can you imagine being in Konoa's shoes or having to go through what his family is going through? it's just so senseless and the fact that he was carrying a gun for protection because of those gang attacks is just another layer of cruelty... I hope this settlement brings some peace to the Wilson family, but it's also a reminder that we still have a long way to go in addressing systemic racism and police brutality