DOJ Settles Over Texas Church Shooting for $144M

The Justice Department said Wednesday it has tentatively settled a lawsuit over the 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church that will pay victims and their families more than $144 million.

More than two dozen people were killed when Devin Patrick Kelley opened fire during a Sunday service at First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs. Kelley, who died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after he was shot and chased by two men who heard the gunfire at the church, had served in the Air Force prior to the attack.

U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez had previously ruled that the Air Force was “60% liable” for the attack because it failed to submit Kelley’s assault conviction during his time in the Air Force to a national database.

The Justice Department said the settlement is still subject to court approvals.