Lawsuit involving Latin King and security guard settled

A lawsuit involving an altercation between a public transit patron and a private security officer at the Depot in July 2008 has been settled out of court.

Russell Kilfoil, a member of the Latin Kings street organization, filed suit against security officer Byron Meadows and Lankford Protective services last June, alleging he was assaulted, battered and falsely imprisoned by Meadows, and alleging that the security company breached its duty by failing to sufficiently investigate and discipline its employee’s conduct.

Chris Brook, a lawyer with the Durham-based Southern Coalition for Social Justice who represented Kilfoil, said defendants have agreed to pay his client $13,500. Brooks said he understands that the majority of the payout will come from Lankford’s protective services. The coalition represented Kilfoil free of charge and with the exception of a small portion to cover expenses, Brooks said his client will receive the vast majority of the settlement money.

“We’re very happy with the terms of the settlement, but this case was never about money for either Russell Kilfoil or the Southern Coalition for Social Justice,” Brook said. “This case was about trying to ensure that Lankford Protective Services thinks twice about how they treat patrons at the bus terminal and throughout Guilford County, especially patrons of color. Russell Kilfoil was just trying to catch a bus that night. The situation was entirely unacceptable, and I think the terms of the settlement reflect that.”

Sam Lankford, co-owner of Lankford Protective Services, could not be immediately contacted for comment.

Assistant City Manager Michael Speedling, who oversees the private security company’s contract, said that all institutional changes took place soon after the incident.

“It had to do with tightening reporting procedures and continuing education in post-order requirements,” he said. “Our post-orders relate to how an individual will respond to incidents, when they can and cannot put hands on persons, and can and cannot make arrests.”

Speedling said a determination of whether Meadows would have been justified in arresting Kilfoil depends on whose story you believe.

“I wasn’t present during this situation,” Speedling said. “The failure was that Officer Meadows initiated the process of arrest by placing the handcuffs on him and did not follow through. He decided that he was going to give this individual a break, and did not go through with taking him before a magistrate. That created a problem.”

A December 2008 investigation by the Greensboro Human Relations Department concluded that there was reasonable cause to believe that discrimination was at play in the incident based on Kilfoil’s Latino national origin, in conjunction with his age and gender.

A Guilford County jury deadlocked last November over a misdemeanor assault charge against Meadows.

Meadows was banned from working on city property in late 2008, but has remained employed by Lankford. Brooks said he recently encountered him working security at the Alamance County Courthouse in Graham.