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Pittsburgh G20 Hearing Loss Suit Officially Over

A lawsuit by a visiting professor who suffered permanent hearing loss when Pittsburgh police used a Long Range Acoustic Device to disburse Group of 20 summit protesters has formally ended.

The city agreed last year to pay Karen Piper, the visiting University of Missouri professor, $72,000 to settle her claims. But city officials also agreed to meet with a consultant selected by Piper's lawyers who could advise the city on how to use the device, which produces high-intensity sounds and amplifies commands to disburse.

The settlement doesn't require the city to abide by the consultant's recommendations.

A city attorney says the consultation lasted only a few hours, but took months to arrange because of scheduling conflicts with those who attended.

Both sides filed a motion Monday ending the lawsuit stemming from the September 2009 protests.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.