Two years after Sterling Brown's arrest: Lawyer hopes new settlement offer comes soon

MILWAUKEE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Sunday is the two-year anniversary of the arrest and tasing of Milwaukee Bucks guard Sterling Brown.

Brown sued the City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee Police Department in June 2018, and his lawyer Mark Thomsen said they're hoping to see a new settlement offer in the coming weeks.

"If the case is going to settle, it's going to settle in the next two weeks, and if it doesn't settle in the next two weeks, we're going to go right back to taking depositions, including the (police) chief," Thomsen said.

On Jan. 26, 2018, Brown was approached by a Milwaukee police officer after he was parked illegally in a handicapped spot in a Walgreens parking lot. The officer called for backup and a group of officers tackled, tased and arrested Brown.

Brown was never charged with a crime, but several officers were suspended as a result of an internal investigation.

Thomsen is now calling for the city to say the officers violated Brown's civil rights. He said the city's response hasn't been enough for Brown or the public.

"They want to know that the police department has actually implemented changes and provide training to say to officers, 'What you did to Mr. Brown, you can't do to the young 18-year-old on the street,'" he said.

In October, Brown's attorneys asked a federal judge to throw out a $400,000 settlement offer from the city. At the time, city officials said they and police officers have tried to improve community relations since Brown's arrest, and they thought their offer was just and reasonable.

Thomsen is hoping for a new offer soon and along with it, a discussion about how to prevent cases like Brown's in the future.

"The city can really send not only the citizens here a message but a message around the country that a big city can discipline itself, it can implement training practices -- disciplinary practices -- that respect citizens' rights and still allow police officers to do what they're supposed to do: chase bad guys," he said.

CBS 58 reached to police and the mayor's office for comment on this story, but neither responded to our request for comment.