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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spokane moving forward with $500,000 settlement with fiancée of man killed by police

Robert Bradley’s fiancée, Sarah McLaughlin, center, is comforted by Jessie Allum during a candlelight vigil in Riverfront Park. Bradley was fatally shot at his home in Hillyard on Sept. 4, 2022, by Spokane police officers.  (COLIN MULVANY/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)

The fiancée of a man shot and killed by Spokane police officers may soon receive $500,000 to settle a wrongful death claim, according to briefing documents presented Monday to the Spokane City Council.

Officers shot Robert Bradley at his home in September 2022 when they say he pulled a handgun on them as they were trying to serve a court order related to a dispute with a neighbor.

Bradley’s family sued the officers and the city of Spokane last year, alleging the 41-year-old was unloading guns and camping gear from his van from a camping trip when police ambushed him, shooting him within seconds of approaching the van parked at the family’s home in Hillyard. Bradley was hard of hearing, and the plaintiffs argue that he was not given time or sufficient warning to process that police were on the scene before officers opened fire.

Spokane County Prosecutor Larry Haskell ruled in March that police Cpl. Chris Johnson and Det. Trevor Walker fired in self-defense, and he declined to file charges against them.

Sarah McLaughlin, Bradley’s fiancée, has agreed to dismiss her claims against the city for $500,000, Assistant City Attorney Lynden Smithson told the City Council Monday. The settlement will come to the council for approval Jan. 6.

McLaughlin’s attorney, Meaghan Driscoll, declined to comment pending final approval of the settlement.

This agreement would not end the city’s legal battles over Bradley’s death, however, as his children have not accepted a settlement agreement, according to their attorney Rondi Thorp. That suit is currently in federal court with a trial scheduled for Nov. 12, 2025.

The city in October approved an additional $150,000 to fight the lawsuit brought by Bradley’s family, bringing total legal defense costs with a Seattle-based law firm to $400,000.

The legal costs defending against wrongful death suits can rise into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The city spent $600,000 in legal fees fighting the wrongful death lawsuit brought by the estate of David Novak. Thorp also represented the Novak family.

The city settled the Novak lawsuit for $4 million.