At a special meeting on Tuesday, April 26, Redmond City Council approved a $7.5 million settlement to the family of Andrea Thomas Churna, who was shot and killed by a Redmond Police officer on Sept. 20, 2020.

Redmond Police Chief, Darrell Lowe, issued a statement regarding the settlement on April 27, in which he admitted that the department had made an “error” in their original press release regarding the incident.

The original new release from Sept. 21, 2020, claimed that “during the interaction, she confronted officers with a handgun, multiple shots were fired, and the subject was struck several times.”

Lowe’s statement clarified that while Churna was armed with a handgun earlier in the encounter with Redmond officers, when she was shot and killed in the hallway just outside of her apartment, Churna was unarmed. Following the shooting, the officers found Churna’s gun on the balcony of her apartment.

“I apologize to Andrea Thomas Churna’s family and loved ones for the inaccurate statement made regarding the circumstances surrounding her death,” Lowe said.

Chief Lowe said the policy in place when the shooting occurred does not allow him to elaborate specifically on the internal findings until the conclusion of the inquest process and an actual filing determination by the prosecutors’ office. These rules include only taking punitive administrative or disciplinary actions based on clear and available facts.

“While no amount of money will bring Ms. Churna back, this settlement closes a painful chapter,” said Lowe. “I again offer my sympathies to Ms. Churna’s family and loved ones. It is a tragedy that this ended with a loss of life.”