Settlement in killing of armed man by Oakland cops

The family of an armed man shot dead by Oakland police at the end of a high-speed chase in 2011 has agreed to a $185,000 settlement with the city.

Martin Flenaugh, 19, of Oakland was a passenger in a car officers were chasing on Jan. 26, 2011, in connection with a shootout moments earlier.

According to police, he had a 9mm semiautomatic handgun in one hand and a .45-caliber handgun in the other and was shot when he refused to drop the weapons after the car ran a red light, crashed into two vehicles and burst into flames at 85th Avenue and San Leandro Street.

But in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, Flenaugh's mother, Spring Mathews of San Mateo, said that "no reports suggest he fired a weapon at the police officers before they shot at him."

Alameda County prosecutors said the officer who shot and killed Flenaugh, Richard McNeely, had acted properly and would not face criminal charges. The driver of the car was arrested after he ran to a nearby auto shop.

In an order signed earlier this month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero approved a $185,000 settlement, of which $20,000 would go to Mathews, $20,000 would go to the dead man's father, Martin Flenaugh Sr., and $10,000 would be given to the guardian for the younger Flenaugh's child. An additional $75,000 would be given to the child upon adulthood.

The remaining $60,000 would pay attorney's fees.

The settlement must still go before the Oakland City Council for approval.