DENVER—An independent monitor of Denver police and a police official are clashing over whether officers caught on police video are beating two men and whether they should be fired.
Independent Monitor Richard Rosenthal told Denver’s KMGH-TV that he will recommend in a report to be released Monday that officers Devin Sparks and Randy Murr should be fired.
Denver Manager of Safety Ron Perea, who oversees the police and fire departments, said he disciplined the officers for filing an inaccurate report about the April 2009 incident, but doesn’t believe excessive force was used. Perea said Shawn Johnson, 25, of Denver, and Michael DeHerrera, 24, of Pueblo, were intoxicated and pushed the officers.
Perea said DeHerrera fell and was injured when police tried to subdue him in lower downtown Denver.
“The officer there attempts to execute an arm bar takedown. It doesn’t go perfectly,” Perea told KMGH-TV.
The police video is inflammatory, but “when the entirety of the situation is known,” the officers shouldn’t be fired, Perea said.
The video is from the police department’s own surveillance system. The video released by the department shows one man on the ground with officers around him and another watching and talking on a cell phone while gesturing. An officer then grabs the second man and forces him to the street. The camera moves back, but a person in the corner of the frame can be seen repeatedly striking something.
In a lawsuit filed last year, DeHerrera said Johnson was tackled by an officer after an argument between Johnson and a nightclub bouncer spilled outside. DeHerrera said he was screaming for help and was slammed face first into the sidewalk by an officer trying to take him down.
One of the officers hit DeHerrera repeatedly with a piece of lead wrapped in leather, according to the lawsuit. DeHerrera was taken to the hospital and later to jail, the lawsuit said.
KMGH-TV reported Friday that city officials settled with DeHerrera and Johnson for $15,500. Charges, including assault and resisting arrest, against the two were dropped.
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Information from: KMGH-TV,
