Clarification: Dakota-Access-Pipeline-Lawsuit story
Apr 5, 2024, 10:04 AM
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — In a story published April 5, 2024, about an excessive force lawsuit filed by a woman whose hand was nearly severed during a protest near the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota, The Associated Press reported that Sophia Wilansky alleged her injury resulted from an “explosive munition” fired at her by law enforcement officers. The story should have included that the defendants denied firing any explosive devices at her. The story also should have clarified that the judge ruled that the facts as alleged by Wilansky don’t meet legal standards for excessive force or for overcoming the officers’ qualified immunity, in part because they were reasonably trying to disperse protesters, not arrest them.