Demitrous Cook Snapchat Class Action Suit Settles For $90,000

EVANSTON, IL — The Evanston City Council voted 7-1 to pay $90,000 to settle a class action lawsuit filed against the city and its police chief over a social media post last year. Records show another federal lawsuit remains pending. The only alderman to vote against approving the settlement payment said the affair has already cost the city more than $130,000.

Demitrous Cook said he inadvertently publicly posted photos of printed mugshots on the Snapchat app in February 2020. The photos were accompanied by handwritten notes saying things like, "In custody," "Pending," "DOA" and "HIV." Cook's post was deleted within an hour, but screenshots were widely shared.

"I've used the Snapchat camera in my personal life to take photos and store them on my phone, and I didn't realize they could be made public with the click of a button," Cook said last February. "These photos were taken to assist me with an investigation and should have never been made public."

The images included the names, addresses, birthdays and images of dozens of people. One man, Kevin Logan, whose image was depicted alongside the annotation "HIV," filed an eight-count federal civil rights lawsuit shortly after Cook's apology.

Five other people filed a five-count class action complaint in May 2o20. That suit was amended in October after U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly issued an opinion on both cases, dismissing some of the counts and allowing others to stand.

Kennelly described part of the city's argument as "unpersuasive" and another as too late, but ruled that the plaintiffs had not sufficiently claimed any harm as a result of Cook's posts.

Attorneys for the five men argued Cook's post had put them in danger, whether intentionally, recklessly or indifferently.

"Several of the individuals who had their personal information publicly disclosed by Defendant Cook are reputed members of street gangs," the complaint said. "The public sharing of Plaintiffs’ home addresses puts Plaintiffs and their family at risk of physical harm from others who, due to Defendant Cook’s actions, now have Plaintiff’s home address."

As a result of the chief's posting their home addresses, two men had their property damaged by bullets, two people received threatening messages including their home addresses, several lost jobs or job opportunities, and one man was shot by people who followed him from his home addresses after Cook shared it, according to the amended complaint.

Related:
Evanston Police Chief Apologizes For Personal Snapchat Posts
Evanston Man Sues Police Chief, City Over 'HIV' Social Media Post
Police Chief Mistakenly Announces Death Of Shooting Victim

Funding for the $90,000 settlement payment to put an end to the class action suit was provided out of the city's insurance fund. The settlement payment does not represent admission of liability by city officials.

Patch has requested records from the city about other settlement payments to people who did not join the class action, as well as how much money taxpayers have paid in Cook's and other legal fees, and will update here when received.

In Logan's suit, a status hearing has been set for June 10 ahead of a July 30 deadline for the completion of the discovery phase.

Ald. Tom Suffredin, 6th Ward, was the lone vote against the approval of the settlement. Neither the mayor nor any of the other eight aldermen made any comment on the matter.

"I'm sure this was inadvertent, but it has cost the city upwards of $130,000 at this point," Suffredin said. "As far as I can tell, there's been no accountability from the employee responsible for it."

UPDATE: Evanston Pays $125,000 To Settle Suit Over Ex-Chief's Snapchat Post