The criminal trial in the death of Niles Meservey is over, but there’s a $15 million civil suit pending. Troy Meade, the Everett policeman who shot and killed a drunk man while he sat in his car, was cleared of all criminal charges Monday. But that doesn’t mean his, or the city of Everett’s, legal troubles are over. The same Snohomish County jury that acquitted Meade yesterday ruled this morning that Meade was not acting in self-defense when he shot 51-year-old Niles Meservey several times in the back.As such, the taxpayers of Washington state won’t be required to foot the bill for Meade’s defense. The decision may, however, make it that much easier for the Meservey’s daughter, Tanda Louden, to prevail in her $15 million wrongful death-suit against the city of Everett.Her attorney, noted tort lawyer Paul Luvera, explains that the standard of proof used during today’s hearing is lower than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” threshold used during criminal proceedings. Juries in civil cases rule based on a preponderance of the evidence, he says, the standard on which today’s ruling was based on. In light of that, Luvera says he’s confident that a jury will be convinced that Meade used lethal force “in a way that was totally improper.” Or to put it another way, that a jury will find that Meade was responsible for Meservey’s death, if not criminally liable.