A lawsuit filed by the family of a man killed by a state trooper has been dismissed

MINNEAPOLIS — A federal judge has dismissed a civil rights lawsuit against a white Minnesota state trooper who shot and killed a black man during a traffic stop last year, ruling that the trooper’s actions did not violate the law.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel on Wednesday granted Trooper Ryan Londregan’s request to dismiss the lawsuit filed against him by the family of Ricky Cobb II. Brasel found that Londregan did not act unreasonably when he fired his gun at Cobb as the man’s vehicle began to move forward with another state trooper partially inside. A lawsuit against the second soldier, Brett Seide, remains pending.

Seide and a third officer pulled Cobb, 33, over on Interstate 94 on July 31, 2023, because the lights on his car were out. They found that Spring Lake Park man wanted for violating a domestic no-contact order in neighboring Ramsey County. Londregan arrived to assist.

As the officers told Cobb to get out of the car, he got behind the wheel and took his foot off the brake. As Cobb’s car began to slowly move forward, Londregan reached for his gun. Cobb stopped. Londregan pointed his gun at Cobb and yelled at him to get out. Cobb took his foot off the brake again while another soldier’s torso was at least partially in the car. Londregan then fired twice at Cobb, both times hitting him in the chest.

In January, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office accused Londregan of murder. It became a politically charged case in the city where the killing of George Floyd of police in 2020 sparked global protests demanding racial justice. Then, in June, the county attorney reluctantly dropped the charges against Londregan, arguing that new evidence would have made the case difficult to prove.

Cobb’s family filed his lawsuit in April, accusing Londregan and Seide of excessive force and unreasonable searches and seizures.

Following the dismissal of the suit, Londregan’s lawyer Chris Madel said Minnesota Star Tribune that it was a “long and tiring journey to justice” for Londregan. Bakari Sellers, an attorney representing Cobb’s family, said the family is considering appealing the decision or amending the complaint against Londregan.