In a culmination of one of the most closely watched civil rights cases in the Bay Area, college football player K’aun Green will receive an $8 million settlement from the city of San Jose for injuries he suffered when he was shot by a police officer in 2022.
The figure, recommended by city officials and expected to be approved by the San Jose City Council in early January, would rank among the largest police payouts in the city’s history.
Green, now 24, was shot four times by a San Jose police officer outside La Victoria Taqueria in March 2022 after a chaotic incident in which he had intervened to disarm a gunman inside the restaurant. Body camera and surveillance footage later showed Green emerging with a firearm taken from another individual during a skirmish and attempting to leave the scene when the officer opened fire.
At the time, police mistakenly believed Green was connected to a nearby homicide, though the two events were ultimately determined to be unrelated. Despite multiple officers being present, only one fired, striking Green in the stomach, arm, and knee.
The officer who fired the shots, identified as Mark McNamara, resigned from the force after internal investigations uncovered a series of racist text messages on his phone, including derogatory and racially charged remarks about Green and his legal team.
Those messages became a focal point in the case, raising serious concerns about bias and professional conduct.
Green’s legal team, led by civil rights attorney Adante Pointer, argued that the payout reflects both the severity of Green’s injuries and the troubling conduct uncovered in the aftermath of the shooting. Pointer told reporters the proposed settlement is “reflective of the harm K’aun suffered, but also the egregiousness of this particular police officer.”
The recommended $8 million payout includes attorney fees and was proposed as a way for the city to avoid an even larger financial judgment had the case proceeded to trial. U.S. District Court Judge Nathanael Cousins dismissed Green’s excessive force lawsuit in late 2025, clearing the path for settlement negotiations to conclude.
Green, who suffered significant injuries but survived, has since continued his education and football career, earning a full scholarship to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and putting him on track to be the first in his family to graduate from college.
Despite the progress toward a settlement, the city of San Jose has not issued a formal public apology to Green, even as officials prepare to finalize the compensation agreement.
