- “As the officers dragged me away and beat me, all I could think of was my children. I thought I was going to die and never see them. I struggled for my life, praying to God to save me. Then everything went black.” – Nakia Porter
- “There was some level of justice that was done here. I definitely agree.” – Yasin M. Almadani
SACRAMENTO – A federal civil rights lawsuit that began with a violent roadside encounter five years ago has concluded with one of the largest excessive force settlements in California history. The $17 million agreement between Solano County and Nakia Porter, her father J.B. Powell, and her three children represents what attorney Yasin M. Almadani, lead counsel for the plaintiffs, described as “some level of justice.”
“There was some level of justice that was done here. I definitely agree,” Almadani said in a recent follow-up interview.
The case of Porter, et al. v. County of Solano, et al. drew national attention after Porter, a Black woman from Sacramento, alleged she was brutally beaten unconscious by sheriff’s deputies in front of her father and young children.
The lawsuit detailed how the incident unfolded on August 6, 2020, as the family drove home from a cultural event in Oakland. After safely stopping on a side road to switch drivers, deputies Dalton McCampbell and Lisa McDowell detained the family.
According to the lawsuit, Porter, who is 5 feet 2 inches tall and 125 pounds, calmly explained she was trading seats with her father for the remainder of the drive. But deputies moved quickly to handcuff Powell, prompting Porter to plead with them for an explanation. Her father and her three children, then ages 3, 4 and 6, watched helplessly as deputies dragged her away and knocked her unconscious.
“As the officers dragged me away and beat me, all I could think of was my children. I thought I was going to die and never see them. I struggled for my life, praying to God to save me. Then everything went black,” Porter said in a statement.
When she regained consciousness, she was handcuffed inside a sheriff’s patrol car. Her father was also handcuffed, and her children were left alone while deputies searched the car.
“These deputies treated us less than human and left a void we are still struggling to fill,” Porter said. “I cannot describe what this type of experience does to a person, but I wish it on no one. I try to stay positive and move forward a little bit each day. This cannot happen again—to anyone. I want to see real change.”
The $17 million settlement, finalized on September 29, 2025, comes after years of litigation.
“We were nearing trial and just the negotiations culminated in a settlement that was acceptable to our clients,” Almadani said. “I do appreciate that the county took the case and the injury seriously.”
He explained that the size of the settlement reflected the scope of the harm.
“From plaintiff’s perspective, it was just the enormity of the injury and the long lasting impact of it,” he said. “At some point when you reach a settlement, both sides have to sort of come to a compromise between the position. So I think that from plaintiff’s perspective, the injury, it’s so great that it’s difficult to fully comprehend and compensate, but I think that this was acceptable.”
For Porter, the physical and emotional recovery has been slow and ongoing. “I think she’s doing the best she can on her journey towards healing. I can definitely say that there is still a long road to go in that healing process,” Almadani said. “It’s difficult. It’s hard to live something like this down where you face a situation where you think that you may die and you may never see your kids again and they may die. That’s sort of what was going through her head, and it’s hard to live that down.”
Solano County did not admit liability as part of the settlement, a common provision in civil cases.
“The county did not acknowledge liability. So I want to be clear that they didn’t acknowledge liability,” Almadani said. “I also wouldn’t call it a payoff because the way that our legal system is designed when somebody suffers a tort or a personal injury, when somebody’s damaged, the only way that the system knows how to compensate is through monetary compensation. That’s just how the system’s set up. We’re not in the age of Hammurabi where it’s an eye for an eye. That would not be the society you want to live in. So from that perspective, I think that there was compensation that was provided, but the county did not acknowledge any sort of wrongdoing or liability.”
For Almadani, a former federal prosecutor, the larger issue goes beyond one settlement or one family’s ordeal. He believes systemic change must come from within law enforcement.
“I think the place where there needs to be a change is generally in law enforcement culture,” he said. “You can’t act like, okay, well this is my team and I don’t care if anybody on my team does anything wrong, I’m just going to back them up. I think when you have that sort of mentality, then you increase the chances for abuses.”
Instead, he said, accountability should be built into the culture itself. “If we have a culture within law enforcement where an officer does something wrong, the others point that out and they hold them accountable because that’s what they’re sworn to do to serve and protect and abide by the law. So that’s where I think if we can get a change in the culture of how law enforcement departments function, and we can reward officers who stand up for the right thing, not just for their department, no matter what, I think that’s what’s going to bring about real change in this regard.”
Throughout the case, Almadani said he was inspired by Porter’s resilience and her family’s character. “I was really honored to serve this family, I will tell you that Ms. Porter, her family are some of the most exceptional human beings that I’ve ever come across. I’m not just saying that because they’re my clients, but I rarely come across people who care about others and about the world and who are so thoughtful and so accomplished,” he said.
He noted Porter’s academic and professional achievements, underscoring the loss not only to her but to her community. “She graduated summa cum laude in computer engineering with a bachelor’s degree, and then went on to get a master’s summa cum laude in computer engineering. And so a very, very bright person, but not just bright, she was also just an exceptional human being who was always spending her time giving back to the community and just exceptionally kindhearted,” he said.
Porter, in turn, praised her attorneys.
“They were fierce advocates for me and my children, and I was comforted with the knowledge that they were on my side and would always be fighting for my interests,” she said. “While nothing can ever replace what we lost, I am grateful to my lawyers for the vigorous representation.”
Almadani said the outcome, while historic, is not the end of the conversation.
“What happened to Ms. Porter and her family should never happen in our society, which values and respects law and order and the equality and dignity of all people,” he said. “Having a badge is not a license to abuse and assault the very people that law enforcement agents are sworn to serve and protect. I am honored to have been a part of this historic case and to have brought some level of justice to Ms. Porter and her family.”
For the Porter family, the legal battle may be over, but the work of healing continues. The settlement, while monumental, stands as both accountability for past harm and a stark reminder of the reforms still needed to ensure that what happened on a dark Solano County roadside in 2020 never happens again.
Follow the Vanguard on Social Media – X, Instagram and Facebook. Subscribe the Vanguard News letters. To make a tax-deductible donation, please visit davisvanguard.org/donate or give directly through ActBlue. Your support will ensure that the vital work of the Vanguard continues.
