SAN DIEGO (AP) -Former Chargers linebacker Steve Foley has agreed to settle his lawsuit for $5.5 million against a police officer who shot him while off-duty two years ago, ending his pro football career.
Foley struck the agreement with the city of Coronado and Officer Aaron Mansker last week, on the day he was scheduled to testify in his civil trial in San Diego Superior Court, but the terms were not released until Monday.
"He's going to be able to get on with his life and bring some closure," said Foley's attorney Harvey Levine.
The Coronado City Council approved the settlement Monday, said Mayor Tom Smisek.
The city, an upscale peninsular enclave on San Diego Bay, will pay the entire $5.5 million, Smisek said. Insurance will cover all but $100,000, which will come out of city coffers.
City Attorney Steve Boehmer, who represents the city and Mansker, did not respond to a phone message.
Foley, 32, was shot in his leg, hip and hand in September 2006 after Mansker tailed his car home from downtown San Diego to suburban Poway, 15 miles north, on suspicion that the driver was drunk.
Mansker, then a 23-year-old rookie officer, was driving his personal car and wearing a T-shirt and jeans when he twice pulled up next to Foley and ordered the player to pull over. Foley ignored the orders and drove home because Mansker didn't identify himself as a police officer, Levine said during the trial.
The two men confronted one another in Foley's cul-de-sac. Mansker testified at the trial that he fired when he saw Foley reach for his waistband, thinking the player had a gun.
Foley pleaded guilty in 2007 to misdemeanor drunken driving.
He was released two years early from his contract with the Chargers in March 2007 and has moved to Houston, where he is caring for his 11-year-old daughter and plans to complete his college degree, Levine said.
Mansker was cleared of criminal liability after the San Diego County district attorney's office found he shot in self-defense. Mansker was honored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving at a luncheon in March for making 57 drunken driving arrests in 2007.
