The city of Anchorage has reached a financial settlement with the family of a teenager shot and killed by police last summer.
The city paid $2.11 million to the family of Easter Leafa. Leafa was 16 years old when she was shot by Anchorage police at her home on August 13. Officers had received a 911 call from a family member who said Leafa was threatening others with a knife.
Police body camera footage of the incident showed Leafa walking in from a balcony into the home while holding a kitchen knife. As she stepped into the apartment towards officers, she was shot and died on the scene. State prosecutors later ruled that the officer who shot Leafa was legally justified.
Leafa’s shooting was the sixth of eight police shootings last year, and prompted widespread community outrage.
“I have met with the Leafa family, and the grace with which they’ve responded to their loss is profound,” Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance said in a statement announcing the settlement. “I am grateful for their desire to prioritize healing, for themselves and the whole community.”
Two days after Leafa’s, LaFrance’s administration announced that they would hire a third-party investigator to look into the shooting, and committed to a series of reforms including reviewing the training officers undergo during the police academy and a review of the last 15 years of police shootings.
The Leafa family praised the city’s response in a written statement.
“Mayor LaFrance and Chief Case heard us and committed to trying to make our community safer by looking deeply at not only this tragic event, but also by examining in general police policies on training and implementation of best practices in the community,” the Leafa family wrote.
The review of Anchorage’s police shootings and third party review of Leafa’s shooting were publicly released by the city in November and January, respectively. The city is currently working to hire a contractor to review the police department’s use of force and de-escalation policies.
This year, Anchorage police have shot five people, killing three of them.
