PROVIDENCE –
The city has reached a settlement in the lawsuit brought in connection with the 2020 moped crash that left Jhamal Gonsalves, then 25, comatose and disabled, but the family says it will never be repaired.
“No matter the amount, it will never compensate for what happened,” Mark Gonsalves, Jhamal’s father, said Thursday.
The terms of the settlement, approved this week by the City Council’s Committee on Claims and Pending Suits, have not yet been revealed.
“The one thing I don’t like is that
it’s settled without fault. It sounds like a slip and fall. There’s no accountability for the officers,” Mark Gonsalves said Thursday.
He said his son’s right arm and left leg will never be the same and that a guardian must make decisions for him.
“He’s disabled,” Mark Gonsalves said.
Lawsuit alleged unsafe, reckless pursuit
Jhamal Gonsalves sued then Providence Police Chief Col. Hugh T. Clements Jr., Public Safety Commissioner Steven Paré, the city and two officers – Kyle Endres and Brad McParlin – in the aftermath of a police pursuit of Gonsalves, riding a moped, that left him comatose for months and with a traumatic brain injury.
He accused the Providence police of using unsafe and excessive force in the Oct. 18, 2020, chase in which officers attempted to box Gonsalves in, forcing him to veer off Elmwood Avenue and lose control of the moped, the suit says. Officer Kyle Endres then hit a stop sign and struck Gonsalves.
Attorney General Peter F. Neronha later cleared the officers of wrongdoing after an investigation determined that Gonsalves was injured by being struck in the head area by a stop sign, which immediately beforehand had been struck by a Providence Police cruiser driven by Endres. The state found that Endres was not criminally reckless.
The Providence Police Department concluded, too, that police were not trying to improperly box in Gonsalves as he rode down Elmwood Avenue and that the officers did not violate the department's pursuit policy.
The case had been expected to go to trial next month in U.S. District Court. Settlement talks were ongoing this fall with Judge William E. Smith.
Pursuit sparked protests across the state
Outrage over the circumstances of the crash spread swiftly through the biker community and beyond, sparking protests. Community members say a video shared widely on social media shows a police cruiser driving into Gonsalves' moped, sending him flying onto the pavement. Friends described Gonsalves, who at the time was with a pack of ATVs, motocross bikes and other such vehicles, as a kind person, hard worker and beloved member of the community.
Settlement money to be placed in trust
Gonsalves' attorney, Amato A. “Bud” DeLuca said Thursday the money would be placed in trust and monitored for Gonsalves and should last the duration of his life.
“The money will be used by him,” DeLuca said.
While city officials would not specify a dollar amount for the settlement, they did weigh in with thoughts for Gonsalves.
"The decision brings this case one step closer to resolution and closure. We continue to keep Jhamal and his family in our thoughts and prayers,” John Goncalves chair of the Committee on Claims and Pending Suits, said in a statement regarding the committee’s approval.
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Originally Posted by FriskyDingo
but i have a seafoam green 125cc scooter 
