Henderson settles with family of boy, 12, killed in 2020 standoff

The Henderson City Council on Tuesday approved a $275,000 settlement for the family of a 12-year-old boy who was shot and killed while being held hostage during a 2020 standoff.

Joseph Hawatmeh was killed after Henderson Police Department officers fired 28 rounds into a vehicle he was in on Nov. 3, 2020, outside an apartment complex in the 1400 block of Stonelake Cove Avenue, near North Stephanie Street and Wigwam Parkway.

Police at the time said the boy’s captor, Jason Bourne, shot and killed Joseph’s mother, Dianne Hawatmeh, 38, and Veronica Muniz, 33. Bourne also shot the boy’s sister, Yasmeen Hawatmeh, rendering her a paraplegic before taking Joseph hostage in a SUV owned by the family while still holding the gun.

According to a 2024 lawsuit filed in Clark County District Court by Joseph’s father Iehab Hawatmeh and other relatives, the SWAT team was called to respond to the hostage situation, but police had already shot and killed Bourne and Joseph by the time SWAT personnel arrived at the scene.

Sixteen officers eventually surrounded the vehicle Joseph and Bourne were in, according to the complaint filed in 2024. After officer James Pendleton was instructed to shoot into the vehicle, “a volley of consecutive gunshots” ensued which mortally wounded the boy and Bourne, the complaint stated.

In 2023, the Clark County district attorney’s office ruled that none of the seven police officers who opened fire should face criminal charges.

The Hawatmeh family first sued Henderson in federal court in 2022. That case was dismissed, but the ruling allowed the plaintiffs to pursue the case in state court.

Roger Croteau, an attorney representing the Hawatmeh family, said Tuesday the settlement agreement all but resolves the 2024 suit filed by Iehab, Yasmeen and Layth Hawatmeh. He declined to comment further. Iehab could not be reached for comment.

During a videotaped deposition in 2023, Pendleton testified that Bourne was never seen shooting anything, raising his gun or threatening officers from inside the car.

Defendants in the federal case, however, said in court documents that Bourne had “put a gun up” to Joseph when Pendleton opened fire.

Police have refused to say if any of the bullets fired by officers struck Joseph. After body camera footage was released by police in December 2020, Deputy Chief David Burns said “officers were unable to rescue the juvenile before he succumbed to the injuries inflicted by Bourne.”

After Henderson City Council approved the settlement, a city spokesperson said in an email that the settlement does not constitute an admission of wrongdoing by any officer. The statement did not say whether police gunfire killed Joseph.

The agreement states lawyers for the involved parties will ask for the District Court suit to be dismissed and that plaintiffs agree not to sue the city in the future regarding Joseph’s death.

“The settlement reflects a decision to avoid the time, expense and uncertainty associated with prolonged litigation in state court, including trial and attorney fees,” the statement said. “The City believes this resolution is in the best interests of all parties involved.”