Shooting suit costs climbing

Because the family of the victim refuses to relent, Clearwater agrees to put thousands more into the case.

By JENNIFER FARRELL, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published June 25, 2002

CLEARWATER -- The court battle has dragged on nearly nine years and cost the city roughly $150,000.

Last week, commissioners agreed to spend another $40,000 on legal fees.

And still there is no end in sight.

The tortuous case stems from the fatal shooting in August 1991 of 25-year-old John Crouch by Clearwater police Officer Robert Milliron.

After Milliron was cleared by a jury on a manslaughter charge, Crouch's parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Milliron, Clearwater police Chief Sid Klein and the department.

A June 2000 story in the Times profiled Jake and Paula Crouch, who have vowed to press for a jury trial until they die, believing it is the only way to prove to the world their son did nothing wrong.

The couple has refused to settle or even discuss the possibility.

Commissioners, meanwhile, are growing frustrated with what has become a deepening money pit for the city.

Last week, they questioned city attorney Pam Akin on legal strategy during a work session when she reported on the case.

"Are we just throwing good money after bad?" asked Commissioner Hoyt Hamilton, adding later: "I'm baffled by this one."

Akin told commissioners the Crouches have declined to attend court-ordered mediation and arbitration.

"Of course we have to prepare for all of these actions," she said, explaining the city's ever-compounding legal fees.

To handle the case, the city uses two outside law firms: one represents the city and Klein, while the other defends Milliron.

Typically, such lawsuits such are settled before trial, resolved by court-ordered mediation or thrown out. As a rule, judges expect the two sides to hammer out a deal before going to court. Even the few that do get to a jury are generally resolved in two to three years.

But for the Crouches, the battle was never about money.

For more than a decade, they have mourned the loss of their youngest son, killed the night of his older brother's bachelor party.

After the shooting, they told the Times previously, they made a pact to see the case through to trial.

Since then, a police review board determined Milliron's use of deadly force wasn't justified and he was fired after eight years on the force.

Milliron's attorney has filed a motion for summary judgment, asking the court to decide the case on the law. John Richardson, whose firm represents the city and Klein, said Monday he expects to file a similar motion within the month.

But don't expect a speedy resolution, Akin warned last week.

"Ultimately, we will get to conclusion," she said. "But it will not be a smooth path."

Jake and Paula Crouch could not be reached Monday.

-- Jennifer Farrell can be reached at 445-4160 or farrell@sptimes.com.

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