A Denver jury found Thomas Charles Armstrong guilty of resisting arrest late tonight after a two-day trial.
Armstrong said he was beaten into a coma by officers in 2005 in retaliation for his brother Earl Armstrong’s criticism of police.
The family has a long history of conflicts with police and Armstrong’s father was fatally shot by police when he was a child.
The jury of four women and two men heard two accounts of the same arrest during Armstrong’s trial that began Monday in Judge Raymond N. Satter’s courtroom.
Armstrong testified he was calmly walking down East 11th Avenue and Xenia Street about 1 a.m. on Nov. 11, 2005 when a Denver police officer pulled up in a police cruiser and approached him.
Armstrong told the jury that the officer handcuffed him and punched him in the stomach and that he ran away from the officer in fear. He also told the jury that more officers arrived on the scene and continued to beat him and placed him in a body bag.
Armstrong’s attorney, W.A.M. Al-Haqq told jurors that his client had a right to try to get away from police because there was no legal reason for them to contact him and an officer admitted that they did not know whether Armstrong was involved in a crime when they approached him.
But Denver police Officer Daniel Swanson testified that he saw Armstrong flailing his arms and screaming in the middle of East 11th Avenue and had to contact him to see if he needed medical assistance. Swanson also testified that it was part of his duty as a police officer to make sure Armstrong was not a threat to himself or others.
Medical records show Armstrong had cocaine, alcohol and marijuana in his system and Swanson said he wanted to take Armstrong to detox.
Swanson said he asked Armstrong to lace his fingers behind his head so he could do a pat-down and that is when Armstrong started running away from him.
The two struggled in the street and Armstrong ended up in the intensive-care unit at University of Colorado Hospital.
An witness to the incident, Kerry Frakes, said it appeared that Armstrong was trying to keep Swanson from gaining control of his arms and testified that he did not see a beating.
The outcome of the trial could impact the federal civil rights lawsuit that Armstrong has filed against the cities of Denver and Aurora.
Both cities are named in the action because officers from both agencies were involved in the arrest as it occurred on the border of both towns.
Felisa Cardona: 303-954-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com
