Dane County has agreed to pay $118,000 to settle a news media lawsuit stemming from the April 2008 killing of UW-Madison student Brittany Zimmermann.
The Wisconsin State Journal, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WISC-TV and WTMJ4 in Milwaukee filed the lawsuit in May 2008 over the release of records related to the 911 phone calls in the Zimmermann murder.
The settlement will pay for the four media outlets' legal fees, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.
Dane County Corporation Counsel member Marcia MacKenzie said any payment would be covered by the county's insurance carrier, not by taxpayers.
After the four media outlets filed a lawsuit last year, a judge issued a court order that officials release documents relating to the 911 call made by Jordan Gonnering, Zimmermann's then-fiancé, soon after she was murdered.
The call was released after police redacted any information they believed would harm their investigation, according to channel30000.com.
The recording of the 911 call itself has not been made public.
Zimmermann was stabbed to death in her Doty Street apartment April 2, 2008. The case remains open for investigation.
