Iowa City Settles for $100,000 Over Arrest of Photographer in 2020 Protest

A protester waves a DC flag with Black Lives Matter spray painted on it as protesters march through the streets during a demonstration over the death of George Floyd, who died in police custody, in Washington on June 2, 2020. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

The city of Des Moines has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a freelance photojournalist who claimed he was tackled by a police officer while covering a demonstration in 2020.

Mark “Ted” Nieters filed the lawsuit against the city, law enforcement officer Brandon Holtan, and chief of police Dana Wingert in December 2020 following his arrest during the June 2020 protests triggered by the death of George Floyd, who died while in police custody in Minneapolis.

According to his lawsuit, Nieters was photographing protests at the Iowa Capitol Building when the law enforcement officer pepper-sprayed and tackled him to the ground.

Nieters informed the officer that he was a journalist and provided press credentials, but the officer proceeded to arrest him on a failure-to-disperse charge, which was dropped on Aug. 13, 2022.

His lawyer, Gina Messamer, confirmed Thursday that the city will pay Nieters $100,000 in a settlement, and the officer has agreed “to have judgment entered against him” as part of the settlement terms.

“We were very pleased to finally have some accountability from the City of Des Moines,” Messamer said in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times.

“It took four years and a lot of hard work, but the freedom of the press and our constitutional rights are worth fighting for,” the lawyer at Parrish Kruidenier law firm added.

As part of the settlement, both the city and the Des Moines Police Department have also agreed to issue statements acknowledging the importance of a free press.

City Manager Scott Sanders said the city is “happy to put this case behind us,” although he noted that the City Council will still need to approve the proposed settlement at its Sept. 16 meeting.

“The City is grateful to the jury and the federal court for their time in helping to bring this case to a resolution,” Sanders told The Epoch Times by email.

“Of course, we are happy to produce a statement that reflects our approach in everything we do at the City regarding the importance of a free press for our community and the value and appreciation that the City has for the work that the press does,” he added.

In 2022, a district court granted the city officials’ motion for summary judgment and ruled that the officer had “arguable probable cause” to arrest Nieters for failure to disperse. His lawyers filed an appeal with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in 2023, which reversed the dismissal of Nieters’s unlawful seizure and excessive force claims, but upheld the ruling on his First Amendment retaliation claim.