Central Austin Edition | February 2022

CITY& COUNTY

News from Austin & Travis County

Park renamed in honor of civil rights activist

City Council approves settling police lawsuits formore than $11million

BY BEN THOMPSON

“These settlements remind us of a real dicult and painful moment in our city. No one should be injured while merely exercising their con- stitutional right to protest,” Austin Mayor Steve Adler said. On Feb. 17, District Attorney José Garza also said he anticipates multiple indictments against APD ocers for actions during the 2020 protests in the near future. Two additional lawsuits alleged APD systematically mishandled sexual assault cases for years. The allegations include widespread bias against survivors for years and ending cases early. “We can never truly right the harm that has been done to so many women in our community, but I also know that we can all move forward in a way that honors survivors,” Garza said at a City Council meeting on Jan. 27.

AUSTIN Since the start of 2022, Austin City Council has approved more than $11.3 million in settle- ments for lawsuits over allegations of police misconduct. The payments include $875,000 approved Jan. 27 over claims related to sexual assault cases. The other payments, $150,000 approved Feb. 3 and $10 million Feb. 17, will settle three cases involving the use of excessive force. The use-of-force settlements stem fromMay 2020 protests over the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Two law- suits, settled for $8 million and $2 million, allege Austin police ocers used “brutal and excessive force,” including shooting one plainti in the face with a projectile and another in the head with a “less-le- thal” beanbag from a shotgun.

BY ZACHARIA WASHINGTON

AUSTIN City Council members voted to rename Lamar Beach at Town Lake Metro Park to Volma Overton Sr. Shores at Town Lake Metro Park in honor of the civil rights activist at a Jan. 27 meeting. Overton, originally from Austin, is widely known for his legal contri- butions and eorts to desegregate schools in the city. Overton also served as the president for the Austin chapter of the NAACP from 1962-83. He died in Austin in 2005. “As an Austinite and an entrepre- neur inspired by his consistent work in the community for equal rights and opportunities for minorities, I’m incredibly excited that Volma Overton Sr.’s legacy will be kept alive

Volma Overton Sr. (top) was an Austin civil rights activist.

COURTESY CITY OF AUSTIN

N. LAMAR BLVD.

in the heart of Austin,” Overton’s granddaughter Kim Overton said in a press release. The park is located at 1200 W. Cesar Chavez St., Austin.

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