Less than 48 hours after the family of Tony Robinson accepted a historic $3.35 million settlement in their case, Madison Police Department Chief Mike Koval responded to the family’s acquisitions and said MPD Officer Matt Kenny will remain with the department.
In a blog post Friday evening, Koval detailed where Kenny will be assigned in the MPD and responded to comments made by attorneys and family at the press conference Thursday.
Kenny won’t participate in patrol duties but instead will work with the mounted and training units. Koval said in the post Kenny requested this arrangement.
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Koval expressed condolences to family and friends of Robinson as the two-year anniversary of his death draws near.
“As a father of two adult sons, I cannot even fathom what it would be like to wake up and not be able to call them, hug them, and encourage them in the pursuit of their dreams,” Koval said.
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The legal team representing Robinson’s family claimed the city would not have settled unless they believed they would have lost their case. But this claim works both ways, Koval said.
Robinson’s family agreed to the settlement as opposed to going to trial and facing the possibility of losing the lawsuit, Koval said.
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Koval also discussed the review process of the Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation and MPD in the post. He said he feels confident in the process as well as the outcome of the MPD internal review of the incident.
By removing the city of Madison as a defendant in the case, the judge rejected the idea the internal investigation process was inadequate, Koval said.
“I know my workforce will rise to yet another challenge and demonstrate unequivocally to our constituents that MPD is still striving to serve with care and compassion,” Koval said.
City of Madison dismissed as defendant in Tony Robinson case
Koval said he does not plan to reopen the internal investigation of this incident. He said he also does not see reasons for further criminal review in the incident.
Regardless of this incident, MPD will continue with engagement efforts, Koval said.
“We need to build authentic relationships of trust in order to forge partnerships that can work well collaboratively,” Koval said.