In July, police in Houston fired dozens of shots into a local woman's car, totaling the vehicle.
asserted
police → fire → vehicle
The city said it owed her $0.
asserted
it → say → 0
That might make sense had Abigail Trujillo, a student at the University of Houston, been involved in a crime.
uncertain
Trujillo → make → crime
Law enforcement, however, does not allege that.
asserted
enforcement → allege → that
Trujillo was at work in a local shopping center when her Nissan Altima became collateral damage as cops attempted to apprehend a man named Jamarcus Spates.
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cops → become → man
It was unfortunate enough to be both proverbially and literally caught in the crossfire.
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It → catch → crossfire
But what came next compounded the damage.
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came → come → damage
Attorneys for the city declined her request for compensation, writing in a letter that they "regret your inconvenience in this matter.
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they → decline → matter
"
"I feel stuck in the middle here," Trujillo told the Houston Chronicle, which first reported this story.
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which → feel → story
And I wasn't done paying off that car, so I still have to make those payments while finding a new one.
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I → do → one
It is part of a larger pattern of municipalities rejecting requests for compensation after innocent people's property is destroyed by law enforcement while in pursuit of suspects.
asserted
property → reject → suspects
Not far away in McKinney, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas, a SWAT team in 2020 threw dozens of tear gas grenades into Vicki Baker's house and drove an armored vehicle through the front door as officers tried to capture a fugitive who had barricaded himself inside.
asserted
who → throw → himself
When Baker sought compensation from the city, she was told she did not meet its definition of a victim.
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she → seek → victim
The government declined to pay.
asserted
government → decline → ?
Her home insurance also refused to cover it, invoking a common clause that excludes damage caused by the government.
asserted
that → refuse → government
"I've lost everything," she told me in 2021.
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she → lose → 2021
It was the start of a legal odyssey that saw Baker's case work its way up and down the courts for more than half a decade.
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case → see → decade
A jury awarded her approximately $60,000 in damages in 2022, only for that to be reversed the next year by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, which cited that police had acted by "necessity during an active emergency."
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police → award → emergency
The Takings Clause of the 5th Amendment promises "just compensation" when private property is taken for public use.
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property → promise → use
But the courts are not in agreement on whether an exemption exists—and, if it does, what exactly it entails—when police power is involved.
asserted
power → exist → what
Baker's claim was ultimately denied under the U.S. Constitution.
uncertain
claim → deny → Constitution
But the 5th Circuit confirmed this year that she was entitled to $60,000, plus interest, under the Texas Constitution.
asserted
she → confirm → Constitution
"Regarding future victims, this should help in Texas," says Jeffrey Redfern—an attorney at the Institute for Justice, which represented Baker—told me last year, after a lower court ruled in her favor.
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court → regard → favor
"As far as we can tell, municipalities in Texas have just been ignoring [a] binding decision from the Texas Supreme Court about SWAT damage, but hopefully some publicity around the result will spur change."
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publicity → tell → change
It would appear not everyone has gotten the message.
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everyone → appear → message
Houston Mayor John Whitmire insists the city followed the law in Trujillo's case.
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city → insist → case
But he said he is making an exception for her and liaised with the police union to replace her car.
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he → say → car
He is also working with the city to review past claims that were denied.
uncertain
that → work → claims
It's the right thing to do, particularly given the asymmetry between the immense impact it has on individuals and the negligible effect it has on government coffers.
asserted
it → do → coffers
The Aporia
