Alameda County pays $36M following murder of Dublin couple by deputy
FILE ART- Former Alameda County sheriff's deputy Devin Williams.
OAKLAND, Calif. - The Alameda County board of supervisors will pay $36 million to surviving family members of a murdered couple in Dublin, the county counsel announced Tuesday night, after a suit alleged the deaths were preventable because the former sheriff's deputy who killed them failed a psychological test but was hired anyway.
$36 million
What we know:
The East Bay Insiders first reported the amount, which appears to be the highest settlement stemming from the Alameda County Sheriff's Office.
Interim County Counsel Andrea Weddle announced after closed session that the amount was agreed upon on March 24, with four supervisors agreeing to pay and Supervisor David Haubert absent.
The case was filed by Angela Hang Tran on behalf of Tran's son. The case was consolidated with another case, Wong V. Alameda County Sheriff's Department.
Double murder
The backstory:
On Sept. 7, 2022, former deputy Devin Williams Jr. drove to Dublin and killed Maria Tran, 42, a nurse, and her husband, Benison Tran, 57, while family members were home.
Williams had been in a romantic relationship with Maria Tran.
Not Suitable
Why you should care:
An investigation by KTVU revealed that Williams had been deemed "D. Not Suited" during his psychological exam, meaning he wasn't fit for the job. But he was hired anyway in 2021.
That disclosure prompted an audit that found 47 Alameda County sheriff's deputies hired between 2016 and 2022 had also received a not suitable rating, but were hired anyway.
In October 2024, Williams was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and later sentenced to 50 years to life in prison.
Other payouts
A review of Alameda County payouts from the sheriff's office shows some other high dollar amounts, though none come close to $36 million.
In 2023, a jury awarded $8.25 million to a Black mother and daughter whose civil rights were violated outside a Castro Valley Starbucks.
The same year, the county awarded $7 million to the family of Maurice Monk, who was left languishing in his jail cell for days at Santa Rita Jail before anyone noticed he was dead.
At the time, Monk's settlement was the highest wrongful death settlement in county history, according to a KTVU analysis of police payouts.