The Michigan State University Board of Trustees announced Friday it reached a financial settlement with the relatives of three students killed during the Feb. 13 mass shooting on campus. Attorneys for the families say they will each receive $5 million.
Earlier this year, the families of Arielle Anderson, Brian Fraser and Alexandria Verner filed a letter of intent to sue MSU. The filings are not lawsuits per se; instead, they represent a procedural step in initiating legal action against a public entity like MSU.
“The fact that this part has been begun to be taken care of is in some ways, good news, of course, but at the same time it's just another just horrible reminder of the emptiness and the loss of their child,” said Ven Johnson, an attorney representing the Anderson and Fraser families.
In the lawsuit intent letter, the families claimed the university was aware of security concerns months before the incident, including a lack of cameras on campus and appropriate locking mechanisms for classrooms.
As part of the agreement, Johnson said MSU is denying any wrongdoing in the shooting.
“But anyone, any government entity, any defendant, any insurance company that settles a potential case, without litigation for $5 million certainly represents that Michigan State understood that there was a potential civil liability or they wouldn’t have paid that amount or any amount,” Johnson added.
Since the shooting, MSU has made several upgrades to improving its security system on campus including the installation of locks on the majority of classrooms on campus.
The families plan to honor Anderson, Fraser and Verner philanthropically with some of the funds they have received.
