McLeod Law Group, LLC won a verdict on behalf of the two minor children of Albert “Bert” Reeves for $97,500,000.00 in the United States District Court, Charleston Division. The jury deliberated for 4 hours before returning their unanimous verdict at 7:00 p.m.
The lawsuit stemmed from the fatal shooting of the former Mayor of Cottageville, Bert Reeves, by a Cottageville police officer, Randall Price, on May 16, 2011. The defendants argued to the jury that Mr. Reeves attacked the officer and that the shooting was done in self-defense. McLeod Law Group, however, was able to prove the municipality was deliberately indifferent in hiring the police officer who had a checkered past and that basic police protocol was ignored which led to an unarmed man being shot and killed by the police officer. This verdict is believed to be the largest contested civil rights verdict in U.S. history.