New York Police Officer Daniel Pantaleo, whose chokehold killed Eric Garner on Staten Island in July, has been sued by residents claiming various abuses in at least three separate cases.

In one of those cases, Pantaleo is accused of falsely arresting and humiliating two men, who say Pantaleo searched them illegally, forced them to pull their pants and underwear down in public, squat and cough.

The City of New York settled that claim for $30,000 – $15,000 for each party involved.

A grand jury earlier this week announced that it would not be indicting Pantaleo in Garner’s death, despite the outcry from community groups who say the NYPD has systematically targeted black and Hispanic men for harassment.

“Claims against members of New York’s finest have swelled by 31% over the past five years. In that time, the city has paid out nearly a half-billion dollars.”

The payout amount in the earlier Pantaleo case is hardly unusual for New York City, where claims against members of New York’s finest have swelled by 31% over the past five years. In that time, the city has paid out nearly a half-billion dollars in claims. According to the New York City Comptroller’s Office, there were 9,500 claims filed against the police department in 2013, to the tune of $137 million. The total amount paid out in fiscal year 2014 has ballooned to $212 million.

Claims against the police department accounted for 37% of the claims against the city by residents, the largest of any of the city’s major agencies, including health and human services, sanitation, transportation, and parks and recreation.

Source: Trymaine Lee. “Claims Against NYPD Cost the City $212 Million In 2014 Alone.” MSNBC. December 5, 2014.  http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/claims-against-the-nypd-cost-the-city-millions-year?CID=sm_FB,