$1.17M settlement approved in Alton Sterling protest lawsuit

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The city of Baton Rouge will pay a $1.17 million settlement to 14 people who accused local law enforcement of using excessive force and violating their First Amendment rights at a protest. The 2017 lawsuit says that the 14 plaintiffs — two of whom were identified as journalists — attended the July 10, 2016, protest in downtown Baton Rouge when they were arrested in allegedly obstructing a public passageway. Widespread protests occurred following the fatal shooting of Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old Black man, who was shot six times by a white Baton Rouge police officer. The deadly interaction was caught on cellphone video. The officer was never charged.