After witnessing his aunt, Atatiana Jefferson, being fatally shot by the police, Zion Carr, will now receive a huge settlement from the city of Fort Worth.
In 2019, we reported that Jefferson and her nephew were home playing video games at her home when a police officer who was set to do a welfare check fatally shot her. In 2021, Zion’s mother, Amber Carr, filed a lawsuit against the city stating that her son, who was 8 years old at the time, had suffered from terror, agony, and anxiety, after seeing his aunt gunned down.
The suit also states that Zion suffered from, “severe and extreme mental and emotional distress,” and blamed the city for his stress. Two years after filing the lawsuit, Amber passed away from congestive heart failure. Earlier this month, the city announced their proposed settlement of $3.5 million and the Fort Worth City Council came to a unanimous vote to approve the payment.
Councilman Chris Nettles said, “I for one, am excited about this opportunity to make sure that he can go to college and do things that his mother and his aunt wanted him to do as they were raising him.” He went on to thank Mayor Mattie Parker and the rest of city council for approving the settlement.
Mayor Nettles said that the payment was “the right thing to do.” She continued, “I hope this can bring a degree of reconciliation and healing for Atatiana Jefferson’s loved ones.” Zion Carr will receive the settlement in various ways and it will cover his living expenses and will contribute to a college savings plan.
He will receive payments until the age of 40.