Police chief settles with Utah city for $70k
June 24, 2021 /Local News

Police chief settles with Utah city for $70k

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The police chief of the Salt Lake City suburb of Cottonwood Heights has been paid a $70,000 settlement after filing a lawsuit claiming the city had planned to wrongfully terminate him.

The money came from the Utah Local Government Trust, which is funded by premiums made by cities to settle claims, among other issues, KUTV reported.

An attorney for Chief Robby Russo said the legal fight had gotten expensive and “in the end it made the most sense to resolve this in the interest of everyone.”

Russo sued the city and councilwoman Tali Bruce in May 2020, claiming there was a plan from to wrongfully terminate him.

Bruce has denied Russo’s allegations and filed a counter suit claiming Russo showed a pattern of intimidation and harassment. Bruce said she’s still pursuing her own claims against Russo and the city, and declined to comment on the settlement.

Under terms of the settlement, Russo waived his initial allegations. The trust and the city had no comment.

Written by