Michelle Hadley settlement with Anaheim police was $1.8 million, report says
TMZ says Michelle Hadley received a $1.8 million Anaheim police settlement after the cyberstalking case featured in Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
2 min read
The Michelle Hadley settlement tied to the Anaheim cyberstalking case featured in Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story was $1.8 million, TMZ reported, citing sources with direct knowledge.
Hadley spent 88 days in jail in 2016 after she was arrested in a case the Netflix documentary says was built on accusations planted by her ex-boyfriend, Ian Diaz, and his fiancée, Angela Connell. The allegations included claims that Hadley tried to arrange for Connell to be sexually assaulted through a Craigslist post, according to the documentary as described by TMZ.
TMZ reported that Hadley later sued the city over the investigation, and that the case was resolved in 2021. The Netflix documentary says Hadley settled with police, but did not disclose the dollar amount.
How much was Michelle Hadley’s settlement?
Hadley’s settlement with Anaheim police was $1.8 million, according to TMZ’s sources with direct knowledge. Those sources told TMZ that her attorneys received 40% of the settlement.
TMZ also reported that Hadley did not have to cover her lawyers’ taxes because the matter was a civil rights case. Her own share of the settlement was taxed, according to the same report.
After those deductions, Hadley ended up with about $800,000, TMZ reported. The outlet said she used the money to buy a condo in Connecticut and to complete her master’s degree in marketing at Chapman University.
What does A Toxic Love Story say happened?
A Toxic Love Story revisits the 2016 Anaheim cyberstalking case and Hadley’s arrest. According to TMZ’s summary of the documentary, Diaz and Connell framed Hadley for extreme online threats and criminal conduct.
The documentary also portrays the police work as rushed and careless, TMZ reported. TMZ said the documentary links the flawed investigation to Diaz’s influence at the time as a U.S. Marshal.
Hadley’s family also spent about $35,000 on lawyers during the criminal case, according to TMZ’s sources. That cost came before the later civil settlement over the police handling of the case.
The case has drawn new attention because of the Netflix documentary, which puts Hadley at the center of a story about a wrongful arrest, jail time and the legal fight that followed. TMZ reported the previously undisclosed settlement figure after the documentary identified the existence of the police settlement without naming the amount.
This story draws on original reporting from TMZ.