Beverly Hills pays $32.5 million to settle lawsuit over officer's death

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (FOX 11) - As reported first on FOX 11 News, a $32.5 million settlement has been reached in a lawsuit involving three men.

In May of 2014, Officer Ernest Allen was killed when his personal vehicle was smashed by a fast-moving cement truck. The 27-year veteran was working as an off-duty security guard on his way to Stevie Wonder's house when he was mowed down by the big truck.

The truck driver, Brandon Cascio, has been in a vegetative state ever since and a third cement truck driver, Eric Johnson, was also in a wreck and hurt at about the same time. He ended up driving into parked cars to stop his descent.

All three entered into a lawsuit against the City of Beverly Hills and have now settled.

Meanwhile, the family of Officer Nicholas Lee, who was killed in the same sort of accident two months earlier, have their own lawsuit that's pending and has not yet been resolved.

Attorney Brian Panish said he feels good the victims can now put this behind them, but no amount of money will bring back their loved ones. He also said his office has offered to pay for the repair of Loma Vista Drive to make it safe, but there's been no response from the City of Beverly Hills.

We asked for a response to the settlement from the city attorney. He sent us a statement that read: "This was a settlement arising out of two tragic fatal accidents that involved a number of plaintiffs. The vast majority of the settlement proceeds were paid by the city's insurance."

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