"Cowboy" Mike Braae
The state of Washington has settled two lawsuits against the Department of Corrections, agreeing to a payout of $3.25 million for the department’s handling of convicted killer “Cowboy” Mike Braae’s case.
The Olympian reports the state filed the settlement agreement in Thurston County Superior Court, part of 4 lawsuits filed by family members of women who were killed, thought to be killed or otherwise were victimized by Braae. The remaining two lawsuits remain active.
A payout of $3 million goes to the two daughters of Lori Jones, a Lacey woman killed by Braae in 2001. Another $250,000 is going to the estate of Karen Peterson, who said Braae sexually assaulted her in Yakima County that year.
The lawsuits allege that Braae wouldn’t have been able to victimize the woman had DOC correctly placed him on community supervision, as ordered by a judge in 2000.
In 2008, Braae was sentenced to nearly 48 years in prison for raping and murdering Jones. (AP)
