Texas Private University Settles Lawsuit Over Fatal Officer-Involved Shooting
Details of the settlement involving the 2013 shooting of a UIW student by a campus police officer have not been released.
Photo via Adobe
San Antonio, Texas — The family of a University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) student who was fatally shot by a campus police officer in 2013 has settled their lawsuit against the school.
In December 2013, UIW Cpl. Christopher Carter pulled Robert Cameron Redus, 23, over for driving erratically.
According to audio from Carter’s body-worn camera, prior to the shooting, Redus repeatedly ignored the officers commands, reports KSAT. Campus Safety previously reported that a witness also overheard the officer tell the suspect several times to stop resisting and warned him he would shoot.
Authorities say Carter attempted to use a baton on the suspect, but Redus took the baton away from him. The officer then knocked the baton out of Redus’ hands, after which the suspect charged at him. The officer then fired his weapon six times and struck Redus five times.
An autopsy conducted on Redus found he was heavily intoxicated when the shooting happened.
The student’s family alleged UIW “failed to exercise reasonable care in hiring, training, supervising and retraining the officer,” reports KENS.
UIW attempted to have the lawsuit, which was filed by Redus’ family in 2014, thrown out, arguing its police department should receive governmental immunity. However, the Texas Supreme Court rejected UIW’s case.
Carter was cleared of criminal wrongdoing in 2015 by a grand jury but left the department.
Settlement details about the shooting were not released to the public, but Brent Perry, the attorney for the Redus family said the following in a statement: “Mr. and Mrs. Redus are thankful that the lawsuit has been settled and they and we look forward to honoring the memory of Cameron through the settlement. What happened to Cameron should not happen to other students like him.”
UIW also issued a statement on the matter, saying: “We entered settlement discussions with a sincere desire to reach an outcome that serves the best interests of all concerned and pray this resolution allows the Redus family to find some sense of peace.”
If you appreciated this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our FREE digital newsletters!
About the Author
Robin Hattersley, Editor-in-Chief
Robin has been covering the security and campus law enforcement industries since 1998 and is a specialist in school, university and hospital security, public safety and emergency management, as well as emerging technologies and systems integration. She joined CS in 2005 and has authored award-winning editorial on campus law enforcement and security funding, officer recruitment and retention, access control, IP video, network integration, event management, crime trends, the Clery Act, Title IX compliance, sexual assault, dating abuse, emergency communications, incident management software and more. Robin has been featured on national and local media outlets and was formerly associate editor for the trade publication Security Sales & Integration. She obtained her undergraduate degree in history from California State University, Long Beach.
Related Content
Leading in Turbulent Times: Effective Campus Public Safety Leadership for the 21st Century
This new webcast will discuss how campus public safety leaders can effectively incorporate Clery Act, Title IX, customer service, “helicopter” parents, emergency notification, town-gown relationships, brand management, Greek Life, student recruitment, faculty, and more into their roles and develop the necessary skills to successfully lead their departments. Register today to attend this free webcast!
