According to reports, the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART) recently announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Jasmine Gao, a 33-year-old Chinese woman, and her family, paying US $6.75 million in compensation to resolve the incident that occurred in November 2024. A police shooting case. The incident, from the initial unilateral false statement by the police, to the video exposure of law enforcement cameras, and then to the rapid reconciliation, caused widespread doubts from the local people about the fairness of police law enforcement.

Video footage of the incident

BART acknowledged the statement issued by police chief Kevin after the incident was "factually inaccurate" and stressed that the compensation was intended to rebuild public trust and avoid lengthy court proceedings.

Ms. High¡¯s lawyer, Nissen Baum, said at a news conference: ¡°It¡¯s a textbook-style law enforcement mistake, and the shooting shouldn¡¯t have happened.¡±The High¡¯s parents also issued a joint statement saying that the trauma she suffered ¡°cannot be reversed,¡± but BART¡¯s acknowledgment was ¡°important¡± and hoped it would boost the process of police reform.

Chinese woman runs out of car park

Shot in the back by a police officer

About 9:30 p.m. on November 18, 2024, Ms. High was sitting alone in the car at Union City BART station parking lot. She was a 2017 grade graduate of the University of San Francisco Arts, engaged in art-related work and never participated in any illegal activity. BART Police Nicholas received a vehicle inspection of the parking lot after reporting a high-speed turn. Law enforcement camera video showed that police approached Ms. High after inspection confirmed her tires were cold and therefore did not participate in dangerous driving behavior.

However, Nicholas noticed that the high lady¡¯s license had expired, asking her to provide a driver¡¯s license and insurance certificate. The high lady agreed to hand over the driver¡¯s license, but Nicholas asked her to hand over the car keys and threatened to use pepper spray. The high lady showed fear and repeatedly shouted ¡°Stop! You¡¯ve scared me¡± and tried to get back the driver¡¯s license. At this time, Nicholas tried to open the car door and pull her out, and the high lady started the vehicle slowly away.

Nicholas shot three times from outside of the car, all hit the high lady's back. One bullet passed through her heart and main arteries, less fatal; the other caused her left arm to permanently lose function. The high lady was seriously injured and lost a lot of blood, and was urgently taken to the hospital to rescue. California law stipulates that police are not only entitled to detain the vehicle because the car license has expired.

Police initially claimed false The ¡°Police Attack¡±

On-site law enforcement video reveals the truth

About 12 hours after the incident, BART Police Director Kevin issued a press release stating that Ms. High was "suspicious of attacking the police with a vehicle" and would face charges of attacking the police, escaping arrest.

But the publication of the law enforcement camera video on December 13, 2024 completely overturned this claim. The video showed that Ms. High¡¯s vehicle did not drag the police, nor was the police body stuck in the windows or doors of the car. Then, BART admitted the initial report was ¡°inexact¡± and did not raise any criminal charges against Ms. High.

Ms. High's parents said the police's false narrative continued to exist on the Internet, causing lasting harm to her psychology and this shooting killed our daughter and left permanent injuries.

Ms Gao's lawyer, Nissenbaum, criticized: "When Ms Gao showed fear, the first reaction of the police was to threaten to use pepper spray? It only made her more scared. She just drove away slowly and no police officers were threatened." He stressed that the incident highlighted the lack of police training.

The picture shows a screenshot of foreign media reports

BART immediately launched an investigation into Nicholas and placed him on leave. The investigation confirmed that Nicholas¡¯s statements were inconsistent with the video, and eventually BART issued a notice of dismissal intention, and the dismissal proceedings are still underway. BART reached a preliminary settlement with Ms. High, paying $6.75 million to compensate for her physical, emotional and economic losses, including medical expenses and reputation damage. On September 12, the BART Board finally approved the payment of the compensation. As part of the settlement agreement, BART issued a joint statement officially acknowledging: ¡°When Ms. High drove away, no police were dragged or body parts were in the truck window, and no other police were in danger because of her driving.¡±

Ms. High¡¯s parents added: ¡°While the trauma cannot be reversed, this recognition is important. We hope this will end police atrocities, drive public reforms, and remind officials to be honest in responsibility.¡±As of now, Ms. High is still in recovery, facing the double trouble caused by the loss of left arm function and stress trauma. BART said that reconciliation will help rebuild trust and avoid longer lawsuits.

Zheng Zhi, Red Star reporter