2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. And that starts with getting rid of every supervisor at LPD who approved of the violence in this video, she said. By law, if I see an OSHA violation and fail to act,I can be held personally responsible. DENVER, Sept 8 (Reuters) - The city of Loveland, Colorado, has agreed to pay $3 million to an elderly woman with dementia who suffered a dislocated shoulder and broken arm while . It was unclear if the officers had lawyers, and the Loveland Police Department did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment on Thursday. I'm not talking to nobody.". The lawsuit claims Sychla arrested Siers without a warrant and used excessive force against him, and violated the Dog Protection Act when he allegedly choked the dog. The video below is police bodycam footage from the incident. The city said the findings of the latest review will be made public once it is complete. The state's second-highest court on Thursday overturned a man's conviction for disarming a police officer, determining that Colorado law does . The charges were dismissed by the Larimer County District Attorneys Office. You can send your story ideas to her at sswanson@coloradoan.com or on Twitter at @sadyswan. Philip Metzler and the City of Loveland of excessive force and violation of the Americans With . The next thing Talmadge recalled was being at the hospital. Schielke said she filed Elias original complaint quickly as to avoid the statute of limitations closing. The arrest startled her father, Jon Siers, who repeatedly told the officers that what they were doing was completely wrong, the lawsuit states. The civil lawsuit alleges Loveland police officer William Gates falsely arrested Harris Elias on suspicion of DUI while driving in midtown Fort . DENVER - A consulting firm that the city of Loveland brought in to assess the Loveland Police Department last year amid several lawsuits filed over officers' use of force in different cases is coming in to look at another case in which LPD officers are alleged to have used excessive force against a man, his teenage daughter, and their dog. Defund the police was the wrong slogan. Watching my daughter go through this, I mean, I was terrified, Mr. Siers said by phone on Thursday. Really it's a testament to how bad things are at Loveland is that they know they're being recorded, and they don't change their behavior, because they just don't care, Schielke said in an interview. Were not (going to) shoot your dog; knock it off, Sychla can be heard saying. The suit says the girl suffered cuts, scrapes, bruises and a concussion during the ordeal. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Create new account | My Profile | My Account | My Bookmarks | My Inbox | Help | Log in, Back to top Alert Link here Following multiple pleas from Siers to put the dogs inside, Sychla can be seen approaching Skippy and picking him up by the leash and carrying him toward the door, dangling several feet above the ground by his neck. Schielkeis alsorepresenting Karen Garner and her family in an ongoing civil rights lawsuit against Loveland police. A federal judge has dismissed a man's lawsuit against the city of Loveland and multiple police officers that alleged excessive force and unlawful arrest. Body camera footage then shows an officer yanking Skippys collar and pulling him off the ground as Mr. Siers yells, Dont choke my dog!, Im not choking, the officer says. While in the parking space, Sychla pulled out a stun gun and, after Siers began to walk toward him, fired it, hitting Siers in the stomach and causing him to collapse. had 6 out of 6 clues of impairment and he blew a 0.042% on a preliminary breath test; he was arrested for DUI. The Loveland Police Department is facing another excessive use of force lawsuit after the release of information and footage of a 2020 arrest of a man and his then-14-year-old daughter as well as the treatment of one of their family dogs. Schielkeis alsorepresenting Karen Garner and her family in an ongoing civil rights lawsuit against Loveland police. The suit adds that, per LPD policy on handcuffing, people 14 or younger should not be restrained unless they are suspected of a dangerous felony.. The Loveland Police Department was hit with many negative headlines related to the rough arrest of Karen Garner, a 73-year-old suffering from dementia who's only five feet tall and weighs. The suit claims that Siers and S.S. are seeking declaratory relief and economic damages as well as compensatory damages, among other things, through a jury trial. The father of a teenage girl filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against three police officers in Loveland, Colo., who arrested her in 2020, saying the men used excessive force when they slammed the 14-year-old onto concrete, fired a Taser at him and choked the familys Jack Russell terrier. June 17, 2022 The father of a teenage girl filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against three police officers in Loveland, Colo., who arrested her in 2020, saying the men used excessive force when. What theyre doing is just violence., Arrest of Colorado 14-Year-Old Over a Slap Prompts Excessive-Force Suit, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/17/us/colorado-loveland-police-lawsuit.html. Varholak allowed Talmadge, who represented himself in court, to refile his lawsuit by June 6 if Talmadge wished to bolster any of his claims that the magistrate judge found lacking. Even Chief Ticer himself assisted Hill with arresting and charging an innocent person with DUI, by providing a (Drug Recognition Expert) evaluation of the individual and declaring in his (Ticers) expert DRE opinion that the person was under the influence of cannabis.. She added that while she is focusing on the LPD with this lawsuit, as it pertains to this specific department, she has heard from other attorneys that this is a problem across the country. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. The officers then approached Mr. Siers and asked him to stop resisting, according to the body camera footage. I was mad. With more equipment and more officers, they are able to make more arrests and then point to those arrest stats as proof of rising crime levels that they then proclaim requires more funding, equipment and officers to solve. DENVER OK is your Colorado news, entertainment, music & fashion website. She said, at the time, her records requests were not being fulfilled quickly enough to file before time ran out. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. Its uncommon for the city to share information about internal investigations publicly, city manager Steve Adams said in the news release, but the city chose to in this instance to increase transparency. When Siers tries to move around Sychla in the video an action he says was to deal with the dogs Sychla can be seen pushing Siers back. Antolina Hill as one of the defendants as well as including a number of other stories alleging wrongful DUI arrest and information on the culture of the LPDs DUI enforcement. Shes a good kid.. The complaint goes on to say that Ticer and the LPD had a history of giving awards and recognition for high DUI arrests, including reporting the arrest numbers to agencies like Mothers Against Drunk Driving. While both Siers and S.S. can be heard screaming to not choke my dog, Sychla responds by saying he is a K-9 officer. NISP opponents sue Larimer County commissioners over permit approval, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. But the investigation determined the witness had not committed a crime and the officer was not justified in arresting him, according to an internal memo from Police Chief Robert Tice dated May 7. MORE COVERAGE:NISP opponents sue Larimer County commissioners over permit approval. A federal judge has dismissed a man's lawsuit against the city of Loveland and multiple police officers that alleged excessive force and unlawful arrest. The vast majority of cases named in the complaint also say the charges were dismissed. Loveland Police Department officers Jeremiah Wood and Evan Dunlap arrest a 14-year-old girl in Loveland in June of 2020. Member subscribers also receive the weekly print edition of our award-winning newspaper, containing outstanding features and news stories, in their mailboxes every Saturday. We need you. https://www.reporterherald.com/2020/06/22/man-sues-loveland-police-department-alleging-excessive-force/?fbclid=IwAR1nA4PCQglIk6_WZnOrE2Hy6S3zGZ5L5-sxQFW2_D4aHA1QedY48JlaYu0, https://pmatep5f7b.execute-api.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ProdStage. Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. But instead of allowing that, Officer Sychla shoved Siers, according to the lawsuit. Sowls arrest in September 2019 was capturedon body camera footage, released by Sowls attorney Sarah Schielke. In Talmadge's narrative of events, he attempted to eject his roommate from his Loveland home on July 6, 2019, but the roommate refused and instead called police to the home. Phil Metzler, have been. It is terrifying because we all have to drive, we all use the roads, and it shouldnt be that easy for an officer to destroy our lives and there needs to be consequences when they recklessly do so, she said. Both the Garner and Sowl cases were brought to light through Schielke and the Life and Liberty Law Office. A Loveland, Colorado, police officer is on administrative leave and two other officers have been reassigned to administrative duties after a federal civil rights lawsuit alleging excessive use of . Last year, the city of Loveland paid a $3 million settlement to the woman, Karen Garner. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, The suit claims that at this time Siers noticed that his dogs were trying to protect him and his daughter and wanted to safely get them inside. "Any complaint leveled against our personnel is taken seriously," the department said in a statement. As Siers continued to try to get the dog, Sychla failed to put Siers into an arm hold and pushed him to the ground, then pushed him again, the suit says. led to a $3 million settlement last year. While S.S. tried to pull away from Wood and Dunlap, the suit claims, the officers violently assaulted her as they tried to get her in handcuffs, including slamming her body and limbs onto the concrete and against the brick wall while pushing their bodiesagainst her back. The familys small white dog, Skippy, began to bark at the officers in a show of protection, the lawsuit states, prompting Mr. Siers to tell the officers that he was going to get his dog so he wouldnt bite them. The lawsuit alleged that Sowl declined to provide more information when asked and was injured while being detained. Be Proactive. "It is long-established that a citizen cannot be charged with obstruction (or any crime) for merely refusing to answer police questioning," Sowl's attorney Sarah Schielke said in a news release at the time the lawsuit was filed in June 2020. Wood was in field training at the time, according to the lawsuit, which says that Dunlap decided to use this childs slap as a chance for Officer Wood to get more experience practicing a domestic violence arrest.. When the arrest begins, Siers can be seen in the video yelling at Sychla and the other officers that they cant arrest his daughter; all the while the familys two dogs can be heard barking continuously in the background. He began to place handcuffs on her, which were too large for the 14-year-olds small wrists, making it easy to slip out of, Ms. Schielke said. "The city of Loveland, the family continues to anxiously await answers to any of that." Garner was arrested in June 2020 after she left a local Walmart without paying for a T-shirt, soda, candy. Players given Kratom by Colorado coach, police say, Skier Shiffrin's quest for 86th win extended after downhill, 77 inches of snow fall at Colorado ski area in 9 days, City of Loveland chooses firm to conduct independent review after arrest of Karen Garner, Former Loveland officer faces assault charge, accused of writing inaccurate reports related to Karen Garner's arrest, Karen Garner's family feels more 'concern than relief' after charges announced against officers, Policy 1.02: Limits of Authority and Exercise of Discretion. We'd love to hear eyewitness The defendants asked Varholak to dismiss the lawsuit because of Talmadge's successful criminal prosecution and because he neglected to describe the actions each officer took to allegedly harm him. The roof of a police patrol car at night, with the blue and red lights flashing. So, I didn't know quite how to react.. accounts, the history behind an article. According to a complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Denver on behalf of Preston Sowl, 60, by attorney Sarah Schielke, Sowl and his wife were leaving Charlie L's Pub with some friends on. After asking if Hall wanted to press charges, telling him he would need to fill out some information in a packet, Hall said he would rather just pass., The suit claims that despite Halls decision to not press charges, Dunlap decided to use the slap as a chance for Officer Wood to get more experience practicing a domestic violence arrest.. The dog was later taken to live with a family out of state because he became extremely aggressive with every stranger after the police encounter, according to the lawsuit. Schielke also said she wanted to ensure the officers who were involved were held accountable and forced to change.. The city, in turn, has announced it will re-hire consulting company Jensen Hughes to investigate the incident. You can be in the know right alongside Colorados political insiders. The city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. Best practices in law enforcement will be maintained and we are committed to accountability if those standards are not upheld, he said. Sowl said he needed shoulder replacement surgery after the incident. By Elise Schmelzer | PUBLISHED: March 2, 2022 at 3:24 p.m. | UPDATED: March 2, 2022 at 3:26 p.m. Siers then can be seen complying with Sychla as he handcuffs him, but asks him to put the dogs away, stating he doesnt want the officers to shoot them. During a press conference held Monday, Deputy Chief and soon-to-be Interim Chief Eric Stewart said that decision came after the department received criticism of former DUI cases, adding the critics are members of a defense bar who represent drivers who were charged and some who ultimately passed blood tests following DUI arrests; he did not say exactly who the critics were and said he could not comment on specific incidents. The amended complaint, which Schielke filed to the United States District Court in Denver Thursday, has the same three claims but comes with several notable additions, including naming Sgt. One of them, a Jack Russell terrier, started barking at the officers when they were trying to get the daughter into handcuffs. The city said Ashe violated three department policies and procedures:. All the investigation and work we were putting in to get a peek at the tip of the iceberg was taking forever, she said. arrested him for refusing to answer questions as a witness about a motorcycle crash outside a Loveland bar Sept. 22,2019. After S.S. came out and began talking with the officers, she eventually admitted to slapping Hall earlier that day the video accompanying the suit claims their body-worn cameras were muted for much of this discussion. Share with Us. Police. Loveland Police Department, via The Life & Liberty Law Office. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. In this section, the complaint says that Gates, who transferred from the Greeley Police Department to the LPD in 2018, hit the ground running with prolific DUI arrests. The complaint claims that in 2018 he had more than 50 DUI arrests, 130 in 2019 and 110 in 2020 despite the pandemic. In an image taken from police body camera video, a 14-year-old girl is arrested at her home in Loveland, Colo., in 2020. Officer Paul Ashe detained Preston Sowl after Sowl refused to answer his questions about a motorcycle crash Sowl witnessed outside a Loveland bar Sept. 22, 2019. I'm not talking to nobody.". This, she said, is something she hopes is exposed and ultimately ended. On June 20, 2020, S.S. bicycled back to her fathers home, heartbroken over the confrontation she had with the boy hours earlier. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, brought in to assess the Loveland Police Department. The lawsuit also claims Wood and Dunlap unreasonably seized, committed a warrantless arrest against, and used excessive force against Siers daughter, who was not named in the complaint because she is a juvenile. Sowl said he needed shoulder replacement surgery after the incident. Sowl was cited with obstructing a peace officer and resisting arrest, but the charges were later dropped. The roommate then exited the house and Talmadge soon received a call from police asking him to step outside. Use the 'Report' link on They had yelled at each other, which caused someone to call the police, according to the lawsuit. COLORADO DOCUMENTARY PROJECT Speak out! I felt helpless just watching them manhandle my daughter the way they did.. He submitted to another breath test at the station on a certified Intoxilyzer machine and blew a 0.028%. We provide you with the latest news and videos straight from the Mile High City! The attorney representing Karen Garner and her family released a video Monday of officers discussing and joking about injuring Garner after her arrest. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. To always use Standard format on my mobile device: Go to My Account, About | Copyright | Privacy | Terms of service | Contact. Brian Bartnes. The release did not state what disciplinary or corrective action would be taken as a result of this internal investigation, just that any disciplinary actions would be taken in accordance with the conclusion and outcome of the IA., More:Colorado Supreme Court ruling makes more police internal investigations accessible. The Loveland City Attorney's Office did not respond to a request for comment as of Thursday afternoon. Colorado Supreme Court ruling makes more police internal investigations accessible. Although Christopher Talmadge claimed that he was nonviolent and "minding his own business" when police reportedly slammed his head into his driveway, the city pointed to an affidavit the night of Talmadge's arrest indicating that he had assaulted his roommate and resisted officers. The official filing of the amended complaint comes quickly after the LPD announced that it would be launching an outside, professional review of its DUI enforcement program; Schielke said she had informed the department of the amended complaint two weeks ago. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. She said that without someone standing up to call out the pattern of violent conduct and complete disrespect for this community, nothing is going to change. As this department has demonstrated in the past, we are not afraid to have outside experts look at our operations to suggest changes where they may be needed or confirm where we continue to excel, it said. The report said Ashe and two other officers took the man to the ground and arrested him for obstructing a police officer and resisting arrest, injuring his shoulder. The officers asked him to call his daughter outside, saying they just wanted to talk to her. The boy, who denied that he cheated, declined to press charges, according to body camera footage of him speaking with the officers, which was released Wednesday by the familys lawyer, Sarah Schielke. RM D5WCP3 - A police officer stops cars at a special checkpoint in Berlin, Germany, 09 April 2013. Karen Garner, who has dementia, was arrested last June for walking out of a Walmart in Loveland, Colorado, with $13.88 worth of items, according to an amended lawsuit filed Sunday. RM W79EWX - Feldjger, the military police of the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces. "Accordingly, Plaintiffs illegal arrest claim is barred by Heck.". In fact, we already know that some of the allegations being made are inaccurate and do not describe the professionalism and respect shown by our officers to the individual involved. Mr. Siers said his daughter had nightmares for months. She was on her period that day and felt scared by the thought of bleeding all over a police car or jail cell, the lawsuit states. The Moving can be an exciting experience. Were stuck on Groundhog Day, basically, she said. Colorado Supreme Court ruling makes more police internal investigations accessible. The girl left on her bike, at which time the officers started calling the numbers of the girl and her father, and eventually went to their house to try to find them after calling for backup officers. The complaint claims Gates said he could smell alcohol coming from the vehicle and that K.S. The city said Ashe violated three department policies and procedures: limits of authority and exercise discretion; search and seizure; and use of force. The suit adds that the slap did not cause Hall injury or even leave a mark, with video showing him telling officers that it only stung. It is important to stress that this process is not an acknowledgement as to the validity or accuracy of the specific complaints made by certain individuals about our DUI program, the statement said. The lawsuit names three officers who were involved in the arrests of Siers and his daughter as defendants: Officers Matt Sychla, Jeremiah Wood and Evan Dunlap. The incident drew interest from nearby residents resulting in someone calling the LPD. The ordeal was enough for someone to call Loveland police to the scene, according to the lawsuit. The three officers named in the lawsuit Matt Sychla, Jeremiah Wood and Evan Dunlap still arrested S.S. outside her home that day. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. The complaint adds that the LPD often posted about their victories in these absurd arrest competitions on social media, continually reaffirming to all Loveland police officers that DUI arrests are valued over all else, especially citizens constitutional rights., LPD has obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars of grant funding for themselves as a result of their DUI arrest numbers, the complaint said. As with previous cases Schielke has brought forth, the newest case against the department came not only with a written description in the lawsuit itself but also with a YouTube video providing both body-worn camera and security camera footage of the incident. The video ends by pointing some blame at the elected officials in Loveland who have supported the LPD and its officers, including clips of previous and unrelated statements from Mayor Pro Tem Don Overcash and councilors Pat McFall and John Fogle. ), First published on January 27, 2021 / 4:46 PM. She pretty much sticks to herself, stays at home, stays out of trouble, he said. Talmadge allegedly told responding officers what had happened and they left. With her amended complaint, Schielke also uploaded an edited video of Elias arrest from 2020 as well as the full three hours of bodycam footage. Loveland Police Officer Resorts to Excessive Force I was scared. He first blew a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.000%, the complaint says, and later that night Elias was given a blood test that eventually came back negative. Once in the driveway, an unidentified officer reportedly told Talmadge to face the garage, prompting Talmadge to ask if he was under arrest. The case was settled for $290,000, City Attorney Moses Garcia said. While the witness was being uncooperative, the IA (internal affairs) reports that there was not probable cause to arrest Sowl, aFriday news release from the city of Loveland stated. Schielke, of the Life and Liberty Law Office, filed the original complaint in January, claiming Fort Collins resident Harris Elias was wrongfully arrested by LPD officer William Gates in early 2020 for DUI. Thank you for your interest in the Loveland Police Department. A civil lawsuit was filed against the Loveland Police Department and City of Loveland after a police officer shot a couple's 14-month-old dog. Longmont landscaper under scrutiny after new complaints, Carreras Tacos Bring West Coast Mexican with a Competitive Edge, Murdaughs fall from grace ends in life sentence for murder, Former clerk Tina Peters found guilty on obstruction charge, Boulder police seek person of interest in womans shooting near CU Boulder. 2001 - 2023 Democratic Underground, LLC. A Loveland police officer violated department policy when he forcefully arrested a witness of a motorcycle crash for refusing to answer questions, the city announced in a news release last week. When S.S. admitted to them that she had slapped the boy, Officer Wood said that she was under arrest, the lawsuit states. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism On a form that asked the boy if the actions of S.S. caused him pain, he marked, No., It was the middle of the day and there was little else to do, the lawsuit states, adding that the officers were bored..