Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

3 hours ago

US House Republicans Head Toward Final Vote on Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut Bill

4 hours ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

4 hours ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

4 hours ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

4 hours ago

Trump Vowed to Dismantle MS-13. His Deal With Bukele Threatens That Effort.

1 day ago

Ukraine Voices Concern as US Halts Some Missile Shipments

1 day ago

What’s Next for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs After His Sex Trafficking Trial?

1 day ago
Video: Colorado Cop Slams 80-Pound Woman With Dementia to Ground, Then Claims She Resisted
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
April 15, 2021

Share

DENVER — A police officer who arrested a 73-year-old woman with dementia, pushing her to the ground and handcuffing her, after she walked away from a store without paying for about $14 worth of items last year was placed on administrative leave Thursday pending the outcome of a police investigation into the arrest.

Watch the Police Body Camera Video

The moves came a day after Karen Garner filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Loveland and police officers over her June 2020 arrest. Two other officers targeted in the lawsuit — a backup officer and a supervisory sergeant — have been reassigned to administrative duties, the Loveland Police Department said.

“LPD takes very seriously the allegations concerning the arrest of resident Karen Garner, and shares with the community the concerns about video images that became public on Wednesday,” the department said in a statement.

Police body camera video included as part of Garner’s lawsuit show an officer approaching her as she walked through a field along a road last summer where she had been picking wildflowers.

Video Shows That Woman Is Obviously Confused

She shrugs with her arms outstretched when he questions why she did not stop despite him following her in a patrol car with his lights and sirens on, the video shows.

When she then turns her back to him and starts walking away, the video shows the officer quickly grab one of her arms, puts it behind her back and pushes her 80-pound body to the ground and puts her in handcuffs as she looks confused and repeatedly says “I am going home.”

She initially holds on to the flowers in her restrained hands behind her back, the video shows.

When the video shows her questioning what is happening, the officer says “I told you to stop. You don’t get to act this way.”

Woman Held Against Patrol Car With Arm Bent Against Her Head

The footage later shows Garner being held against the hood of the patrol car with her left arm bent up next to her head.

The officer implies in the video that she is trying to kick him but her legs are not visible. Soon she starts to slide down toward the ground and the video shows another officer who had recently arrived yelling: “Stand up! We’re not going to hold you!”

The release of the footage and lawsuit comes at a time of a national reckoning over police tactics during arrests, particularly against Black people. Garner and everyone involved in her arrest are white. But her lawyer, Sarah Schielke, said vulnerable people including the disabled can be taken advantage of by police abusing their power.

The police department said it had not received a complaint about Garner’s arrest before the lawsuit was filed. However, the body camera footage shows a man who stopped to film the arrest talking to the arresting officer and later to the sergeant to express concern about what he saw. The sergeant, talking to the man in the background, tells him: “Just because you didn’t see it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.”

Schielke said the man was “gaslit” and questioned why anyone in Garner’s family would want to file a complaint given that reaction. To her, the sergeant’s response shows that the culture of the department, along with a lack of training, are the root problems that led to the arrest.

Woman Returned Items to Walmart

According to the lawsuit, Walmart employees asked Garner to return to the store when they saw her leave without paying and took the items back — a soda, a candy bar, a T-shirt, and wipe refills — denying her request to pay for the items.

Someone from Walmart then called police to report Garner and the direction she was walking but said the store had not suffered a loss, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages, claims that no one sought medical help for Garner until about six hours after she was arrested, when a deputy in the jail noticed she needed help.

The lawsuit claims the arrest violated her constitutional protections against excessive force and to have due process and also violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

According to the lawsuit, forgetting to pay for items in stores is common among those with dementia. It also said Garner suffers from sensory aphasia, which impairs her ability to communicate and understand what other people are saying.

In addition to her physical injuries, the lawsuit claims Garner now experiences fear, trauma, and anxiety whenever she leaves her home.

“What little freedom and happiness Ms. Garner enjoyed in her life as an elderly adult with declining mental health was, on June 26, 2020, recklessly and deliberately obliterated by the Loveland Police Department,” it said.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

House Republicans Say They Expect to Vote Tonight on Trump’s Tax-Cut Bill

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to 8,300 Acres, Prompts Evacuations

DON'T MISS

SLO Deputies Fatally Shoot Man in Los Osos Weeks After US Marshal Impersonation Arrest

DON'T MISS

Madera County Deputy Injured, Wanted Felon Arrested After Violent Struggle

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo County Wildfire Burns More Than 3,000 Acres. No Containment Yet

DON'T MISS

Wired Wednesday: Why Is State Lawmaker Taking Aim at Rooftop Solar?

DON'T MISS

Two Visalia Men Sentenced in 2021 Motel Killing

DON'T MISS

Ex-Jan. 6 Defendant Gets Life in Prison for Plot to Kill FBI Agents

DON'T MISS

Del Monte Files for Bankruptcy. Gets Nearly $1B to Keep Producing Through Process

DON'T MISS

Who is Running for Fresno Area Offices in 2026? An Updated Look

UP NEXT

Poll: Most Americans Say National Divide, Political Violence Threaten Democracy

UP NEXT

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

US Supreme Court Lets Parents Take Kids Out of Classes With LGBT Storybooks

UP NEXT

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

UP NEXT

Tesla Executive, Elon Musk Confidant Leaves EV Maker, Bloomberg News Reports

UP NEXT

How a Birthday Boat Ride on Lake Tahoe Turned Tragic

UP NEXT

Cuomo Concedes to Mamdani in New York City Democratic Mayoral Contest

UP NEXT

Mamdani Holds Lead Over Cuomo in Democratic Primary for NYC Mayor

Stocks Hit Record, US Dollar Strengthens After Jobs Data

17 minutes ago

Jeffries Sets Record for Floor Speech Before Vote on Trump Tax Bill

32 minutes ago

Could Cuddly Colby Be the Darling Gem for You?

56 minutes ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Sandra Neredia Jaquez

1 hour ago

Trump Impounds Billions in Education Funding. For Fresno Unified, It’s $7.1 Million

1 hour ago

Trump Administration Will Focus on Fed Chair Replacement in Fall, Bessent Says

2 hours ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

3 hours ago

US Paves Way to Resume Ethane Exports to China Amid Trade Truce

3 hours ago

US Supreme Court Won’t Consider Reviving Montana Abortion Parental Consent Law

3 hours ago

US Imposes New Sanctions Targeting Iran Oil Trade, Hezbollah, Treasury Dept Says

3 hours ago

Presidential Election Reveals Big Shift in California Voting Patterns. Will It Last?

This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. For the last eight months, ever since Donald Trump wa...

8 minutes ago

8 minutes ago

Presidential Election Reveals Big Shift in California Voting Patterns. Will It Last?

Palestinians displaced by the Israeli military offensive, shelter in tents, in Gaza City, May 20, 2025. (Reuters File)
8 minutes ago

US-Backed 60-Day Gaza Ceasefire Envisages Gradual Return of Hostages, Official Says

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the dome of the U.S. Capitol, in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
13 minutes ago

After Record Democratic Speech, House Republicans Begin Final Vote on Trump Tax-Cut Bill

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., June 26, 2025. (Reuters File)
17 minutes ago

Stocks Hit Record, US Dollar Strengthens After Jobs Data

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) delivers a marathon speech in opposition to U.S. President Donald Trump's massive tax-cut and spending bill, ahead of a vote on final passage of the legislation in the House of Representatives inside the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol, in this still image from video in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 3, 2025. U.S. House TV/Handout via Reuters
32 minutes ago

Jeffries Sets Record for Floor Speech Before Vote on Trump Tax Bill

Colby, a classic tabby, is GV Wire's Adoptable Pet of the Week, July 3, 2025
56 minutes ago

Could Cuddly Colby Be the Darling Gem for You?

Sandra Neredia Jaquez is Valley Crime Stoppers' Most Wanted Person of the Day for July 3, 2025. (Valley Crimes Stoppers)
1 hour ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Sandra Neredia Jaquez

1 hour ago

Trump Impounds Billions in Education Funding. For Fresno Unified, It’s $7.1 Million

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend