Attorneys for Natasha Lancour, the insurer for the officers and the city reached an agreement and informed a federal magistrate on Oct. 3; the magistrate dismissed the case that had been set for trial Oct. 31.

“During the mediation part of the process, the parties obviously saw fit to resolve it short of going to trial,” Superior City Attorney Frog Prell told Wisconsin Public Radio.

The settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing on behalf of the city or Superior police, he said. The city’s insurance carrier will cover the cost of the settlement.

In a phone interview Wednesday, Police Chief Nicholas Alexander said the case represented a “difficult time for everyone.”

“For Natasha, Officer (George) Gothner, our department, but it is nice to find resolution, move forward and continue our efforts to run an open and transparent department,” Alexander said.

Lancour’s attorneys, Rick Gondik and Peter Nickitas, did not return phone calls seeking to discuss the case. Prell said the settlement includes a confidentiality component that prevents them from sharing details with the public.

Lancour, 31, of Superior filed suit in Douglas County Circuit Court in June 2015, stemming from her Jan. 5, 2014 arrest outside Keyport Liquor and Lounge. Video from a squad dashcam showed Officer George Gothner shoving Lancour onto the hood of the squad and striking her with a closed fist as she reached toward his face and tried to pull away.

In the suit, Lancour alleged that: Gothner used excessive force when apprehending her. Sgt. William Lear and Officer Sean Holmgren failed to come to her aid when Gothner used excessive force against her. Lear, Gothner and Holmgren falsified reports to cover up their wrongdoing and support false charges against her.

Lancour initially was charged with battery to a peace officer and disorderly conduct after the arrest, but the felony battery charge later was dropped; the disorderly conduct charge later was dismissed on a motion from Douglas County District Attorney Dan Blank.

Gothner was suspended for one day for using vulgarities during the arrest, but was cleared of claims of excessive force after a state and internal review of the incident.

Bayfield County District Attorney Fred Bourg reviewed the state’s investigation of the arrest and declined to charge anyone in connection with it, finding there was insufficient evidence to bring charges.

However, Bourg did say “there was ample evidence” that Gothner’s actions brought “disrepute to his police agency” and “were rude, in poor taste, and possibly, unnecessarily violent.”

Attorneys for the city’s insurer denied the lawsuit’s allegations and claimed that some of Lancour’s account of the arrest was untruthful, and also claimed that Gothner was acting in self-defense and used only the force necessary to lawfully arrest Lancour.

The city’s insurer moved the case to federal court last year. In June 2016, several co-plaintiffs who witnessed the arrest, or had claims against the city related to the arrest, were dismissed from the suit.

Lancour alone was allowed to continue the suit but many of her claims, which originally included excessive force, falsifying reports, failure of officers to intervene, false arrest, negligent hiring, training and supervision of officers and emotional distress, also had been dismissed by the time the settlement was reached.

Alexander reiterated that neither Lear nor Holmgren had been disciplined as a result of Lancour’s arrest, and the three officers remain employed with the department.

Departmental training is frequently re-evaluated, Alexander said, but no changes were implemented specifically in response to Lancour’s arrest. However, a program is under development to improve the communication officers use to de-escalate confrontations with the public.

“We’re also working with the (University of Wisconsin-Superior)…in the area of cultural awareness … Whether there are unconscious biases we could have, and how to use different strategies so all members of the community, regardless of race, sex or background, are treated the same way — with fairness and dignity,” he said.

Wisconsin Public Radio contributed to this report.

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