Lawsuit alleges Loveland Police Department has pattern of wrongful DUI arrests Blood test shows man arrested in 2020 had no alcohol in system A new lawsuit targets the Loveland Police Department's DUI enforcement. In recent years, the Loveland Police Department has faced several lawsuits that claimed officers used excessive force while making arrests, including on June 26, 2020, when a 73-year-old woman with dementia was thrown to the ground and pinned against a squad car, breaking a bone and dislocating her shoulder in the process. Loveland is not a safe place for pets. The lawsuit alleges officers injured Garner when they arrested her in June 2020 for alleged petty theft. The City of Loveland is paying out $290,000 dollars to settle a lawsuit over the wrongful arrest of a man in September 2019, the man's attorney said. Don't Threaten. COLORADO DOCUMENTARY PROJECT Speak out! January 27, 2021 / 4:46 PM Threats of harming another Police. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. "Indeed, the Amended Complaint lacks even a single allegation of how any specific officer touched Mr. Talmadge or engaged in force that was in excess of what was required to arrest him.". The 18-year-old man declined twice to press charges against the girl and said the slap caused him no pain, according to the lawsuit. The citys statement that it was hiring the consulting firm came after attorney Sarah Schielke filed a lawsuit against the city over the ordeal involving the girl, her father and their dog. According to the suit, the event caused emotional and physical trauma to not only Siers and S.S. but also Skippy. There was a problem saving your notification. In that video, Sychla can be heard explaining to Siers why he used force, explaining he wasnt sure what the Siers intentions were. Loveland City Manager Steve Adams said the city was also releasing its own video from the ordeal and that while the city initially reviewed and deemed appropriate at the time the actions of the officers, but was now taking a second outside look at the incident in our efforts to ensure we are policing in a respectful and proper manner., As we move forward on our accountability efforts launched in 2021, best practices in law enforcement will be maintained and we are committed to accountability if those standards are not upheld.. But instead of allowing that, Officer Sychla shoved Siers, according to the lawsuit. While four officers responded to the Siers home and waited 20 minutes, they were unable to come in contact with S.S. or her father. While all cases referred to each person only with initials and no full names, stories mirrored what Elias went through in early 2020. As for the claim of unlawful arrest, Varholak explained that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision inHeck v. Humphreyprevents criminal defendants from suing for monetary damages over unconstitutional imprisonment unless their conviction is overturned. 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 city also released its own video with footage from the incident from Sychlas body-worn camera, which includes the incident itself as well as Siers arrest and discussion with Sychla. That leads to this result, this absurd result, where the officers prioritize numbers over the constitutional rights of the citizens they are supposed to be protecting, she said. Ashe arrested Sowl for obstruction of justice and resisting arrest, but the 8th Judicial District Attorney's Office dismissed the charges, according to the lawsuit. each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Permalink. The city said the findings of the latest review will be made public once it is complete. Sierss daughter tried to get to her dad, but officers continued to try to put her into handcuffs. Colorado Politics is published both in print and online. Sychla can be seen carrying Skippy to the door before pushing him inside and eventually kicking the dog back in when it tries to come out. "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. 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. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Emergency medical personnel arrived, along with police officers from the Loveland Police Department. I bet at this point Loveland wishes each of these events could involve the same officers, she said. Dutka, an active duty military member, was driving a rental car and did not realize a headlight was out. She had been dating 18-year-old Elijah Hall and, around lunchtime on June 20, 2020, she rode her bike to the nearby Safeway where she found Hall with another woman. Talmadge's roommate reported that Talmadge assaulted him and Talmadge resisted when officers told him he was under arrest. 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 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 city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. Thank you for visiting. You know, it's just, it's horrifying, terrifying, Siers said in an interview Wednesday. person will not be tolerated. Sowl's arrest was captured on body camera footage. In an image taken from police body camera video, a 14-year-old girl is arrested at her home in Loveland, Colo., in 2020. Schielke said the names used in the suit were gained from a records request made to the LPD and, out of respect for each persons privacy, she did not include their full names with the exception of one person. Keep it Clean. 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. The first third of the complaint retells Elias story with much of the restgoing into more detail on what the complaint describes as Chief Bob Ticer and the LPDs obsession with DUI arrests.. 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. The lawsuit alleged that Sowl declined to provide more information when asked and was injured while being detained. U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak noted that Talmadge had failed to allege which officers did what, meaning his excessive force claim was not viable under the law. Federal judge tosses man's excessive force lawsuit against Loveland police, Appeals court finds police baton does not fall under law against disarming officers, Federal judge considers whether wrongful arrest in Aurora rises to constitutional violation, Judge allows lawsuit to proceed against Colorado Springs officer who tased son of congressional candidate, Federal judge refuses to halt lawsuit involving Loveland officer's shooting of pet dog, Polis signs Bradfield's prescriptive authority for psychologists bill | FOCUS ON THE SPRINGS, Colorado Senate Republicans tap their inner 'Mean Girls' | CAPITOL M. This includes several pictures of Facebook posts showing Gates or Hill being awarded for their DUI enforcement work. So, I didn't know quite how to react.. Were not (going to) shoot your dog; knock it off, Sychla can be heard saying. I appreciate the difficult, challenging, and often dangerous roles that LPD officers undertake to keep our community safe, and I want to express my gratitude to the men and women of LPD for taking on this important work and for continuing in our larger efforts to improve community policing to best serve our community, Adams said in the release. 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. LOVELAND, Colo. (KDVR) A Loveland police officer involved in the forceful arrest of Karen Garner resigned on Wednesday following an independent investigation by a consulting firm.. The officers then approached Mr. Siers and asked him to stop resisting, according to the body camera footage. Phil Metzler, have been. Get an email notification whenever someone contributes to the discussion. Motorcycles can be very heavy and can cause severe damage even when just tipping over while stopped. The complaint also touches on results from the Jensen Hughes report that came out following the release of information on the 2020 arrest of Karen Garner, specifically what investigators heard in regard to the departments Data Driven Approach to Crime and Traffic Safety methods. 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 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. This included slamming her body and limbs down into concrete multiples times, the lawsuit says. Shes a good kid.. The complaint also claims that around this time Hill and Ticer learned that some of Gates DUI arrests were wrongful arrests because blood and breath results were coming back showing people were not impaired. 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. The case was settled for $290,000, City Attorney Moses Garcia said. 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. 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. According to the lawsuit, when Siers got home after work he noticed all the missed calls and voicemails from officers who said they wanted to talk with his daughter. LOVELAND, Colo. The City of Loveland is paying out $290,000 dollars to settle a lawsuit over the wrongful arrest of a man in September 2019, the man's attorney said. Talmadge allegedly told responding officers what had happened and they left. The Moving can be an exciting experience. 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. Local attorney Sarah Schielke has filed an amended lawsuit against members of the Loveland Police Department and the city of Loveland regarding an alleged wrongful DUI arrest in early 2020. Loveland to pay $3 million to settle lawsuit from violent arrest of 73-year-old with dementia Julia Cardi [email protected] On Wednesday evening, the Lakewood Police Department said it was aware of the lawsuit. 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. Ashe detained Sowl for not answering his questions, twisting his arm behind his back and pushing his face into the ground. We provide you with the latest news and videos straight from the Mile High City! I was getting my dog, Siers can be heard screaming in the video. They hurt families and destroy lives, Schielke said in a statement. 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. Loveland is not a safe place for grandparents. The department also faced an excessive use of force suit for the 2019 arrest of Preston Sowl, which was settled by the city for $290,000. 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. Watching my daughter go through this, I mean, I was terrified, Mr. Siers said by phone on Thursday. Defund the police was the wrong slogan. Be Proactive. 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. 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 suit also claims Sychla falsified and exaggerated facts in the police report involving Siers. "Plaintiff was arrested on charges of third degree assault and resisting arrest and a jury convicted him of those charges," Varholak wrote in a May 19 order. The city said Ashe violated three department policies and procedures:. Police were . Hill said she could smell alcohol in Dutkas vehicle, which Dutka explained was due to a drunk friend whom she had driven home. We hope you will find useful information in the links on the left. She said, at the time, her records requests were not being fulfilled quickly enough to file before time ran out. The suit claims Sychla also attempted to conduct a hold maneuver to stop Siers, an attempt that was unsuccessful. 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. Nicole Yost, a spokeswoman for the city of Loveland, said she did not know who was representing the officers. 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 three officers named in the lawsuit Matt Sychla, Jeremiah Wood and Evan Dunlap still arrested S.S. outside her home that day. The state's second-highest court on Thursday overturned a man's conviction for disarming a police officer, determining that Colorado law does . An excessive force lawsuit filed against the Loveland Police Department has been settled for nearly $300,000. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. Excess Force Suit Against Loveland Police Settled For $290,000 January 27, 2021 / 4:46 PM / CBS Colorado LOVELAND, Colo. (AP) - An excessive force lawsuit filed against the city of. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, 3 min read. Sowls arrest in September 2019 was capturedon body camera footage, released by Sowls attorney Sarah Schielke. accounts, the history behind an article. The release by Loveland corroborated Schielkes claims, stating that more than a month ago an attorney representing the family involved made a request to settle the claims with a four-day time frame to pay for damages, which the city declined. The city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. But the fact that it doesnt tells the whole story. The suit, filed in the 8th Judicial District Court on Wednesday morning, lists three claims for relief: unreasonable seizure and excessive force resulting in the abuse of their dog Skippy and wrongful arrest of Siers by Sychla; violation of due process and malicious prosecution of Siers by Sychla; and unreasonable seizure and excessive force with an arrest of S.S. by Wood and Dunlap. Mr. Siers said his daughter had nightmares for months. racist or sexually-oriented language. Share with Us. 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. Colorado Supreme Court ruling makes more police internal investigations accessible. The. 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. His two dogs Montana, a chihuahua, and Skippy, a Jack Russell terrier were on long leashes outside the house. 2023 www.coloradoan.com. Colorado Supreme Court ruling makes more police internal investigations accessible. They have used this funding to buy themselves more equipment and hire more officers. Following the footage of the arrest the video stated that the event was reviewed by LPD chain of command and deemed reasonable and justified.. ), First published on January 27, 2021 / 4:46 PM. Use the 'Report' link on The civil lawsuit alleges Loveland police officer William Gates falsely arrested Harris Elias on suspicion of DUI while driving in midtown Fort . $300K seems really low given the cost of the medical treatment and pain and suffereing. DENVER OK is your Colorado news, entertainment, music & fashion website. 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. 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. Police are strengthening their checks of motorcycles and mopeds at the start of spring. It also includes a post from Overcash in February of 2021 congratulating two of the three officers involved in the incident for receiving awards from the department for actions in 2020, with Dunlap and Wood each receiving an Exemplary Action Ribbon for an undescribed reason. The lawsuit alleged officers violated Sowl's constitutional rights when they arrested him for refusing to answer questions as a witness about a motorcycle crash outside a Loveland bar Sept. 22, 2019. 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Garner's arrest drew national attention after body camera footage released by her family's lawyer showed former Loveland Police Department officer Austin Hopp forcibly detain the then. Last year, the city of Loveland paid a $3 million settlement to the woman, Karen Garner. He also added that Skippy had bitten one of the officers involved. The lawsuit alleged officers violated Sowl's constitutional rights when they arrested him for refusing to answer questions as a witness about a motorcycle crash outside a Loveland bar Sept. 22, 2019. Officers Wood and Dunlap eventually got her into handcuffs and arrested her for investigation of charges of harassment, domestic violence, obstruction and resisting arrest. Schielkeis alsorepresenting Karen Garner and her family in an ongoing civil rights lawsuit against Loveland police. 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. 2023 www.coloradoan.com. She also represented Karen Garner and her family in that case, which led to a $3 million settlement last year. The lawsuit alleges officers injured Garner when they arrested her in June 2020 for alleged petty theft. Before coming to Loveland, he graduated from Colorado State University in May 2020 with two bachelor's degrees, one in journalism and media communications and one in history. Watching what they do to this family on this video has to be unsettling and terrifying for any parent in this town because there is no common sense utilized and there is no interest in the damage being inflicted to, here, a juvenile.. 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. A blood test also later showed no impairing substances and the District Attorneys office dismissed the DUI charges, the complaint claims. "Mr. Talmadge was minding his own business, and did not pose a danger to himself or others," Talmadge wrote in his complaint. Schielke said this incident along with others in the past show that there is a theme of issues within department leadership.
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