A 39-year-old man has agreed to a $50,000 payment to settle his lawsuit that accused a Willmar police officer of an unlawful arrest based on race, the man’s legal representative announced Tuesday.

Christopher Flatten and the city were sued in June by Derrick Gilbert, of Willmar, on allegations that he was illegally arrested two years earlier.

The “walking while Black” arrest, as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) called it, occurred when Flatten assumed Gilbert, who was walking to work, was another man, despite Flatten being unable to see Gilbert’s face, the suit alleged.

The ACLU said Flatten assumed Gilbert was another Black man he knew who was seven years younger, 4 inches shorter, 90 pounds heavier and has a much lighter complexion. The ACLU also alleged that Flatten knew the other man through “multiple interactions [and] knew what he looked like.”

In response to the suit at the time it was filed, the defense said Flatten “was acting in his official capacity as a … police officer and performing discretionary acts in the scope of his duties with a good faith belief his conduct was lawful, constitutional, proper and pursuant to probable cause.”

Gilbert said in a statement released Tuesday by the ACLU that “it was horrible to be walking to work and be accused of being a completely different Black man. I hope this will stop other officers from doing this to other Black men in Minnesota.”

ACLU attorney Ian Bratlie also issued a statement Tuesday that read, “We’re happy to have helped Derrick and sorry that he had to go through this. Black men should not have to worry about being over-policed in our society. It’s unjust, evil and un-American.”

The attorney representing the city and Flatten has been asked why the defendants chose to settle the suit, rather than go on trial.

A 19-year-old man has received a prison term of nearly 3½ years for stealing a pricey dog from a woman in St. Paul and then trying to sell her pet for a quick buck.

Lonnie Ray Jenkins, 19, of St. Paul, was sentenced in Ramsey County District Court after pleading guilty to first-degree aggravated robbery in connection with the theft of the French bulldog-Boston terrier mix named Clementine on April 24 near the intersection of York Avenue and Arkwright Street.

With credit for time in jail after his arrest, Jenkins is expected to serve about 2¼ years of his term in prison and the balance on supervised release.

The criminal complaint referred to another male involved in the crime, but police have yet to announce an additional arrest.

According to the complaint:

The dog’s owner said she Clementine, also affectionately called Tiny, were on their way to get ice cream late in the afternoon when two males started following her. She crossed the street out of concern for her safety, and the two males did the same. Once she got to her front steps, one male pushed her to the ground while the other grabbed Tiny and ran off.

The woman told police that Tiny is worth thousands of dollars and is embedded with an electronic identification chip. She feared that if Tiny didn’t get her medication, the dog would fall ill, she said.

Surveillance video showed two males walking in the area and wearing masks. Moments later an SUV picked up the males with Tiny.

One of two reports of sexual assault since September in an Eagan park has turned out to have been made up by the woman, police said Tuesday.

Police said in a statement that after their extensive investigation into the reported sexual assault on a trail in Lebanon Hills Park around 11 a.m. on Nov. 7, “we’re able to report the assault never occurred.”

The woman “admitted that her claims were false, and the incident never took place,” the statement read. Charges will be pursued for filing a false police report, the statement continued. Police are declining to release the woman’s identity.

Police said they continue to investigate the report of a sexual assault in the park late in the afternoon of Sept. 7.

“In an effort to promote public safety, we continue to ask the public to be aware of your surroundings, watch out for each other, and report suspicious people or vehicles,” the statement said. “While this case was found to be false, we are continuing to follow up on the Sept. 7 incident, but unfortunately, we don’t have any new information to share at this time.”