Botched Drug Raid Costs $2.75 Million Damages

Dec 15, 1994, Reuter
Man shot by government agents gets $2.75 million

SAN DIEGO - A 47-year-old computer executive who was shot in the back during a botched drug raid on his home by federal agents will receive a $2.75 million settlement from the federal government.
The victim, Donald Carlson, was living in the San Diego suburb of Poway when agents from the U.S. Customs Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration, believing he was hiding a cache of drugs, burst into his home in August, 1992.
Agents blamed the raid on a bogus tip from a government informant who was later found guilty of lying to the government. Carlson sued the agencies but agreed to drop the lawsuit Wednesday, after a hearing in U.S. District Court, in return for the settlement, a court spokesman said.
According to Carlson's lawsuit, he was awakened by noise outside his home and pounding on the front door. Thinking someone was trying to break in, he grabbed a revolver and shot twice at the door to scare off what he thought were intruders. Agents then broke in and shot him as he fled into his bedroom.
The wounds left him hospitalized in intensive care for six weeks and he still suffers from lung damage, he said. The agreement calls for $250,000 of the settlement to be set aside to cover future medical costs.
Copyright Reuters America Inc. 1994. All rights reserved.
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