Minneapolis Settles With Journalist Blinded During Unrest Following George Floyd's Murder

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The city of Minneapolis has agreed to pay $600,000 to a freelance journalist who lost sight in one of her eyes after being shot by a foam bullet while covering the unrest following George Floyd's murder.

Linda Tirado, a photojournalist and writer, covered the uprising in May of 2020, and during those nights Tirado said she experienced unprecedented levels of violence from law enforcement. One officer fired a less-lethal round at her, striking her in the face.

"My googles came off, I had a laceration on my eye," she told WCCO-TV in 2020. "A lot of blood, a lot of tear gas."

Protesters drove Tirado to the hospital. She lost sight in her left eye, and she sued the city of Minneapolis, then-Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo and other law enforcement officials.

On Thursday, the city said that it agreed to settle with Tirado, but did not comment further on the matter.

In an interview with WCCO-TV, Tirado said that she plans to give 20% of the settlement money back to the Minneapolis community.