Family of Maryland man killed by police for getting out of car gets $6.5 million settlement
Two years after a Maryland man was killed by a cop for getting out of his car, his family received a $6.5 million settlement.
Eric Sopp, a 48-year-old white man, was driving drunk when he was pulled over Nov. 26, 2019, on I-83 north of Baltimore, the Washington Post reported.
His mother, Catherine, had called 911 after he threatened to commit suicide and stormed out of their home in Parkton, about 25 miles north of the Inner Harbor, according to the Post. She told authorities that her son was drunk but unarmed.
Officer Greg Page with Baltimore County Police pulled over Sopp and ordered him to remain in the vehicle, body-camera footage showed. Sopp insisted on getting out and began to stand up. Page fired eight bullets, fatally striking Sopp.
Page was not charged with a crime after an investigation by the Baltimore County district attorney’s office.
“As a result of not being trained properly and using the force he did, he murdered my son and the father of two children,” Catherine Sopp told the Post. “We all continue to grieve Eric. Eric is irreplaceable. No amount of settlement will ever replace him.”
The $6.5 million payout will be split between Eric Sopp’s mother and his two children, the Post reported.
Catherine Sopp and her attorneys stressed the need for Baltimore County Police to either receive better training for dealing with mental health crises or to call in experts, rather than going in guns drawn.
“When I called 911, I thought he would receive help,” Catherine Sopp told the Post. “Instead it cost him his life.”
Page is still a Baltimore County police officer, the Baltimore Sun reported.
