Council committee amends bill to give Itself final say on settlements involving sheriff’s employees

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff and other local constitutional officers would have a say on settlement agreements when their agencies are sued for damages if a bill advanced through a council committee Monday gets final approval.

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Initially, the bill proposed giving constitutional officers like the Sheriff, Supervisor of Elections, Tax Collector, and Clerk of Courts the final say on any settlement agreement.

After being amended by the Council Rules Committee Monday, if the city’s legal arm and the officer can’t agree, the city council would have the final say.

Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters is leading the charge for Jacksonville’s constitutional officers to have more power when it comes to settling lawsuits brought against their agency employees.

Lara Mattina with JSO explained to the Rules committee when the city’s Office of General Counsel signed off on a $200,000 settlement without JSO’s knowledge last July for the family of Jamee Johnson, who was shot and killed by a JSO officer in 2019, the agency suffered irreparable harm.

“There is no time in history that policing has been more difficult, and public trust in policing has been more fraught. And what this settlement in the Jamee Johnson case did was move us back,” said Mattina, JSO’s Organizational Strategic Executive.

Similarly, Waters told us in January, the Johnson settlement was particularly controversial with the agency, as the state attorney and JSO had determined the officer acted appropriately.

“You set a precedent when you settle a case that in my strong, strong opinion should not have been settled in that situation,” said Waters.

But the city’s Chief Financial Office Anna Brosche raised concerns about the bill Monday.

She argued it could expose the city to greater financial risk and exposure.

“We do believe that there will be increased costs in insurance with respect to the excess carrier insurance, assuming that we can get that insurance and that we’re not dropped,” said Brosche.

Brosche also noted, that rejecting a settlement runs the risk of opening individual police officers or other city employees to being sued in their personal capacity, and being personally liable for any damages handed down by a jury.

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The Mayor’s Office expressed similar concerns in a statement.

“This legislation has significant unintended consequences. It will potentially lead to unlimited personal financial liability for law enforcement officers and cost the city millions of dollars in litigation fees, while also limiting our ability to obtain risk insurance,” said Jacksonville Chief Communications Officer Philip Perry in an emailed statement. “We share the Sheriff’s desire for settlement decision notifications, and we continue to discuss the legislation’s broader impact with all the constitutional officers and City Council.”

Council President Ron Salem (R-Group 2 At-Large) contended the Johnson settlement was so egregious, that the bill has become necessary.

“There is a disconnect somewhere between this administration and OGC and this sheriff,” said Salem.

Others, like Councilmember Ken Amaro (R-District 1) had reservations about letting a sole individual be the final arbiter over decisions, like whether or not to settle or go to trial, that could have significant impacts on taxpayer funds.

“What if we get to the end of the road and that officer says, you know what, I had a bad day today. I don’t like this. I’m going to reject it. What are the consequences?” said Amaro.

Those concerns resulted in the adoption of the amendment allowing the city council to have the final say should a dispute between a constitutional officer and the city’s legal arm arise.

The bill is scheduled for a final vote on February 13th.

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