The Seattle PI
TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — The state of Washington has agreed to pay $5 million apiece to the families of two of the Lakewood police officers slain by Maurice Clemmons at a coffee shop in 2009.
Officers Mark Renniger and Gregory Richards were among four officers slain as they prepared to head out on patrol that Sunday morning. A lawyer for their families, Jack Connelly, says a Pierce County Superior Court judge approved the settlements Friday morning.
The Department of Corrections had a warrant out of Arkansas that could have been used to detain Clemmons. Instead, he was allowed to post bail on child rape charges and killed the officers six days later.
Clemmons was killed by a patrol officer in Seattle after a two-day manhunt.
The family of one of the other officers previously settled claims for $2.5 million.