$10M lawsuit filed against Paris officer who shot and paralyzed a man
File / Screengrab via YouTube
A $10 million lawsuit was recently filed with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas against a Paris police officer who shot and left a man paralyzed. In addition, the man has also filed a lawsuit against the City of Paris.
The shooting happened in June of 2021, when officers were called to a single-vehicle accident near 34th Street and Clement Road in Paris. Officers were able to trace the vehicle back to a Reno resident named Colton “Coco” Carico.
Body camera footage shows Paris Police Officer Derek Bristow approached Carico and his girlfriend, Kayla, at their home on Smallwood Road in Reno. After speaking with Kayla, who initially lied about Carico’s whereabouts before admitting he was inside. Carico eventually came to the door with a rifle and told officers he would “blow [his] brains out right in front of [them].”
Bristow and his partner ordered Carico to drop his weapon as Carico turned to go back inside his home. At that time, Bristow shot the man once in the back, footage shows. Carico’s father soon showed up and Bristow used his TASER on the father.
“The City will vigorously defend the lawsuit filed by Mr. Carico regarding the shooting that occurred on June 1, 2021,” said City Attorney Stephanie Harris. “The Texas Rangers have investigated the shooting and found it to be justified, and Ofc. Bristow was cleared by a Lamar County Grand Jury of wrongdoing after the case was presented to it by attorneys from the Office of the Attorney General of Texas.
“Mr. Carico’s own actions created a very clear and present danger to the officers and bystander on the scene that the officers were forced to address in order to prevent Mr. Carico from firing the rifle in his hands.
“The events that ensued happened in a matter of seconds and occurred only because Mr. Carico created a dangerous situation by introducing a high-powered rifle into an otherwise non-violent scene. Both the facts and applicable law appear to support the actions of the City’s officers.”
The lawsuit shows Carico is requesting a jury trial and is wanting $10 million in judgment.
A GoFundMe was created by Carico’s mother, Cindy Brown, and is available by visiting gofundme/c971ff92. So far, it has raised more than $30,000. The body camera footage can be found by clicking here.