A woman who was knocked unconscious and arrested by two sheriff’s deputies in northern California after stopping to change drivers during a family trip in 2020 has reached a $17m settlement with the county, her lawyer said on Monday.https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/30/nakia-porter-police-settlement-solano-county-california
Nakia Porter had filed a federal lawsuit accusing the Solano county sheriff’s office deputies violating state and federal civil rights statutes by engaging in “unlawful seizure, assault and excessive force”.
Porter, her father and her three young children were driving home at night on 6 August 2020, when they pulled off the road. Porter, who is Black, was already out of the car when the deputies pulled up with lights flashing and she explained that they were just switching drivers and would be on their way, according to the lawsuit.
Body cameras worn by the deputies recorded them pulling guns on Porter before slamming her to the pavement while handcuffing her along a rural road in the town of Dixon. Her father, Joe Powell, was also placed in handcuffs and briefly detained.