Fort Collins settles with Tim Masters for $5.9 million - The Denver Post

Fort Collins settles with Tim Masters for $5.9 million - The Denver Post
The city of Fort Collins has reached a settlement deal with Tim Masters.

Masters sued over time he spent in prison for a murder conviction that was later overturned.

Masters will drop his suit in exchange for $5.9 million, the city said in a news release.

Masters was convicted in 1998 without any physical evidence tying him to Peggy Hettrick's murder. His conviction was overturned by DNA evidence in 2008.

There has been no new arrest in the case.

Masters sued Larimer County and Fort Collins city officials in federal court, alleging his wrongful imprisonment was a violation of his civil rights.

In February, Larimer County settled with Masters for $4.1 million.

The Fort Collins portion of the suit contended that police intentionally concealed evidence and made up evidence against him.

Fort Collins said in a release the city will pay $1.575 million "from the city's reserve fund established for this purpose," and the city's insurance carriers will pay the rest.

"The decision to settle this case does not mean the City agrees with Mr. Masters' allegations," city manager Darin Atteberry said in a statement. "To the contrary, we remain firmly convinced that officers who investigated the Peggy Hettrick homicide did so in good faith, using the best technologies and expert consultants that were available to them at the time. The decision to settle the case is strictly a business decision that reflects the financial realities and risks of proceeding to trial."

Masters' attorney, David Lane, also put out a statement:

"While Tim Masters has achieved some measure of justice as a result of this settlement, he would gladly trade all the money for the return of 10 years of his life behind prison bars and ten years before that of living under a cloud of suspicion. "