Fort Worth will pay $250,000 to father of man killed in July 2023 police chase
The Fort Worth City Council voted unanimously at its June 24 meeting to approve paying $250,000 to the father of a man struck and killed by a Fort Worth police vehicle in July 2023.
The settlement comes nearly year and a half after Uriel Lemon Brown sued the city, seeking $1 million in damages for negligence and the wrongful death of his son Andra Craig.
In March, the city settled a separate case related to the same July 2023 police chase for $140,000.
The 57-year-old Craig was leaving a birthday party when he unknowingly drove into the path of a high-speed police chase near the intersection of Evans Avenue and East Rosedale Street.
Officers from the Direct Response Unit were pursuing a stolen Dodge Challenger whose driver had refused to stop after having one of its wheels punctured by a police spike strip.
The car continued through the Evans and Rosedale intersection before stopping one block away.
Craig, who witnesses said had a green light, was ejected from his car after suddenly being struck by the police Chevrolet Tahoe, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleged the police chase was unlawful and that the officer didn’t apply his brakes to avoid the crash.
The case increased scrutiny on the Fort Worth Police Department’s chase policy.
In September 2023, the city of Fort Worth sued the Texas Attorney General to stop efforts by the Star-Telegram and several other news outlets to get a copy of the policy through an open records request. The Attorney General’s Office had said records about police policy on vehicle pursuits had to be released.
The city argued the policy was confidential, and would interfere with the department’s ability to fight crime.
However, the city relented in February 2024, releasing portions of the policy after the Star-Telegram uncovered an older version in a pair of lawsuits from 2019 and 2021.
Sections of the policy covering prohibited practices, use of tire deflation devices, and helicopter pursuits were left out of the February 2024 release.
This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 11:52 AM.
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