A Cincinnati girl and her mother will receive $240,000 from the City and Kroger as compensation after a cop tased the 11-year-old for shoplifting.
Donesha Gowdy was hit with a Taser after she failed to comply with an officer who caught her shoplifting items from the grocery store.
Donesha, who is one of 10 children, didn’t want to ask her mother, Donna Gowdy, for money. So she and a friend biked to the Spring Grove Village Kroger and started stealing snacks.
Officer Kevin Brown, who is Black, spotted Donesha and a friend stuffing snacks, drinks, clothing and other items worth $53.81 in her backpack on August 6.
Brown recognized the girls from a previous shoplifting incident at the store. He gave them a warning that time.
While escorting the minor to the manager’s office, Brown told her “You know, sweetheart, this is why there’s no grocery stores in the black community,” according to his bodycam footage.
Donesha said she ran because she was “scared I wouldn’t get another warning and go to jail.”
An investigation determined that Brown violated policies by firing his stun gun during an incident when it wasn’t required.
Donesha’s mother retained a law firm, and the City agreed to pay $220,000 while Kroger chipped in another $20,000.
The cash will be monitored by the probate court to make sure it is used to pay for therapy for the child’s emotional health.
The City also agreed to participate in a juvenile problem-solving team.
Donna Gowdy said the City should change its Taser policy to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
“He was real wrong, and it should have never happened,” she said. “If he wanted to catch her and make sure she stayed, he could have done it besides Tasing her.”
Gowdy said she also had a good talk with her daughter, telling her “These policemen aren’t playing. It could have been worse. It could have been a gun instead of a Taser.
Gowdy also made Donesha write a letter of apology to the Kroger corporation, telling execs “I’m sorry for stealing from the store [in] will not not do it again.”
The NY Daily News published a photo of Donesha and her mother here.
Photo by Tirc83/Getty Images
