City of Colorado Springs to defend officers in lawsuit filed by man paralyzed from shootout

The Colorado Springs City Council gave City attorneys permission to defend the City, its former police chief and two officers against a lawsuit filed by Thomas Villanueva.

Villanueva was paralyzed during the shooting of Deputy Mich Flick last year. He says law enforcement officers let him walk right into the scene of a deadly shootout.

Villanueva is suing everyone involved in the incident. He was shot by Manuel Zetina, the carjacking suspect who multiple officers and deputies were working to arrest before the takedown went awry.

Villanueva says improper techniques by law enforcement directly led to him being paralyzed.