The Vancouver City Council on Monday will consider settling a $175,000 claim from a driver injured in a T-bone collision with a police car heading to the chaotic scene of Vancouver Police Officer Dustin Goudschaal’s shooting in June.
Vancouver resident Arthur B. Metzger, 80, suffered 10 broken ribs, facial cuts and a concussion in the crash, racking up $62,000 in medical expenses, according to city documents.
“All things considered, both sides think this is a fair and reasonable settlement,” Vancouver City Attorney Bronson Potter said Friday.
Metzger, reached at home Friday, declined to comment on the case.
Around 11:30 a.m. June 30, motorist James Sapp shot Officer Goudschaal seven times during a routine traffic stop near Northeast 34th Street and 162nd Avenue in east Vancouver. Responding to the emergency call, Officer Keith Tyler drove east on state Highway 500 in his 2012 Dodge Charger. He entered the intersection of Stapleton Road against a red light at slightly more than 50 mph, lights flashing and sirens wailing, Potter said.
Metzger, southbound on his way to church in a 1992 Volkswagen Passat, failed to yield, according to the city attorney. The police car slammed into him, and both vehicles were totaled. Tyler had minor injuries.
A Washington State Patrol investigation concluded that Tyler “failed to clear the intersection before he made sure all other drivers observed and correctly reacted to him prior to proceeding through (the intersection) safely,” according to city documents. Vancouver Police Department’s Professional Standards Unit also investigated, concurring that Tyler violated policy.
On Oct. 20, Metzger filed a tort claim, asking for $500,000 to settle the case. He and his attorney have since notified the city they would be willing to accept $175,000.
According to city staff, these are the advantages to settling: The city would have no further liability for Metzger’s injuries; it would resolve the claim at an “acceptable” amount; and it would avoid the uncertain outcome of a trial.
The claim would be paid out of the city’s risk fund.
“It’s big, but is it going to affect our operations at all? No,” Potter said.
The council will vote on the settlement at Monday’s 7 p.m. regular meeting at City Hall, 415 W. Sixth St., Vancouver.
Officer Goudschaal survived the shooting. He was awarded the Purple Heart in February for his “exceptional gallantry and valor” during the incident, in which he managed to return fire despite being wounded in his face, arm and legs. Sapp killed himself in jail in July.