But instead of allowing that, Officer Sychla shoved Siers, according to the lawsuit. The ordeal was enough for someone to call Loveland police to the scene, according to the lawsuit. We'd love to hear eyewitness Another person, identified as K.S., was pulled over by Gates Sept. 30, 2019. 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. But the fact that it doesnt tells the whole story. Schielke and Sowl were not able to answer any additional questions about the settlementdue to the agreement with Loveland, according to the news release. Be Truthful. led to a $3 million settlement last year. The city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. Sierss daughter tried to get to her dad, but officers continued to try to put her into handcuffs. We need you. The city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. 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. Loveland is not a safe place for grandparents. had 6 out of 6 clues of impairment and he blew a 0.042% on a preliminary breath test; he was arrested for DUI. 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. 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. All Rights Reserved. Sarah Schielke of the Life and Liberty Law Office filed a lawsuit against the department and three of its officers Jeremiah Wood, Matt Sychla and Evan Dunlap for the arrest of Jon Siers and his daughter, only named as S.S. in the suit, in front of their home in Loveland in June of 2020. They hurt families and destroy lives, Schielke said in a statement. All rights reserved. The three officers named in the lawsuit Matt Sychla, Jeremiah Wood and Evan Dunlap still arrested S.S. outside her home that day. LOVELAND, Colo. (AP) - An excessive force lawsuit filed against the city of Loveland and four of its police officers has been settled for $290,000. 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. Mr. Siers was later charged with resisting arrest; his daughter was charged with harassment, domestic violence, obstruction and resisting arrest. Four officers were there in total, the lawsuit states. that is degrading to another person. Thank you for your interest in the Loveland Police Department. They have used this funding to buy themselves more equipment and hire more officers. The release added the findings from this review will be made public when the investigation is completed. The next thing Talmadge recalled was being at the hospital. 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. 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. 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.. Schielkeis alsorepresenting Karen Garner and her family in an ongoing civil rights lawsuit against Loveland police. Were not (going to) shoot your dog; knock it off, Sychla can be heard saying. They were both also making their very own wrongful DUI arrests during this time. In an image taken from police body camera video, a 14-year-old girl is arrested at her home in Loveland, Colo., in 2020. Let there be no mistake: Loveland is not a safe place for children. The suit claims that once S.S. admitted to the slap, Wood, without warning, put his hands on her to begin an arrest by starting to put handcuffs on her, stating she was under arrest for assault. Im a canine officer, dude.. I couldn't do anything. 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. 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. 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 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. Defund the police was the wrong slogan. Mr. Siers then asked the officers to stop, saying she was just a child. Officers Wood and Dunlap, who had asked for backup, arrived outside Mr. Sierss home later that day and asked to speak with his daughter. 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. He called them back, and officers came back to his home while he was outside working on his daughters bike. The lawsuit alleges officers injured Garner when they arrested her in June 2020 for alleged petty theft. 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.. Don't knowingly lie about anyone She added that while she had tried to let Loveland settle the matter without taking it public, the city had declined. The officers asked him to call his daughter outside, saying they just wanted to talk to her. or anything. The city of Loveland and Loveland Police Department settled the lawsuit with Sowl in January for nearly $300,000. The city said Ashe violated three department policies and procedures: limits of authority and exercise discretion; search and seizure; and use of force. The event also allegedly changed Skippys entire demeanor; he became extremely aggressive with every stranger to come near the Siers home and eventually had to be rehomed to family out of state. 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It claims Sychla unreasonably and wrongfully arrested Siers and used excessive force against him and his dog, and also that Sychla committed malicious prosecution in arresting and forwarding charges against Siers to prosecutors. COLORADO DOCUMENTARY PROJECT Speak out! As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. 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. RM W79EWX - Feldjger, the military police of the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces. The lawsuit says the girl, Siers and the dog have all suffered since the ordeal that day and that the dog has become extremely aggressive with every stranger.. Whether movers in Fort Collins are helping you Austin Fleskes joined the Reporter-Herald team in August 2020 as the newsroom's public safety reporter. 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. 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 . The city said Ashe violated three department policies and procedures: limits of authority and exercise discretion; search and seizure; and use of force. When the officers arrived, the suit says, Siers was found in front of the house working on S.S.s bike. At one point in the interaction, Sowl can be heard telling Ashe, I dont know what happened. I felt helpless just watching them manhandle my daughter the way they did.. Beyond excessive use of force incidents, the department has faced scrutiny for several other incidents, including the shooting and killing of a 19-year-old boy in 2021 and a dog in 2019, as well as criticism over alleged wrongful DUI arrests. Brian Bartnes. Sady Swanson covers public safety, criminal justice, Larimer County governmentand more throughout Northern Colorado. 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. I was helpless. I was scared. "Force is not reasonable when a suspect is non-violent, not resisting, not fleeing, or poses no threat.". They treat animals like trash. A lawsuit filed by a Fort Collins man accuses a Loveland police officer of wrongfully arresting him on suspicion of driving under the influence in January 2020. 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. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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. Our interviews with LPD staff revealed that they would like to be more involved with community members and community organizations, but do not have time to engage in these activities or problem solving because of the Departments emphasis on its data-driven strategies and the need to produce daily numbers of enforcement actions, the complaint quotes from the report. By law, if I see an OSHA violation and fail to act,I can be held personally responsible. In that video, Sychla can be heard explaining to Siers why he used force, explaining he wasnt sure what the Siers intentions were. 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Watch the body camera footage here According. 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. To always use Standard format on my mobile device: Go to My Account, About | Copyright | Privacy | Terms of service | Contact. Both videos can be found on the Life and Liberty Law Office YouTube page. 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. Ashe arrested Sowl for obstruction of justice and resisting arrest, but the 8th Judicial District Attorneys Office dismissed the charges, according to the lawsuit. Loveland to pay $3 million to settle lawsuit from violent arrest of 73-year-old with dementia Julia Cardi julia.cardi@gazette.com On Wednesday evening, the Lakewood Police Department said it was aware of the lawsuit. This included slamming her body and limbs down into concrete multiples times, the lawsuit says. The back-to-back violent arrests point to a toxic cultural problem that cant be resolved by cherry-picking off the officer, Ms. Schielke said. The incident drew interest from nearby residents resulting in someone calling the LPD. 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. After grabbing witness statements from people in the area, including a statement from Hall where he said the incident did not cause him physical pain, the officers attempted to call S.S. and Siers to no success. 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. 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. Use the 'Report' link on You are just minutes from Greenwood & Myers Mortuary is the first choice for many families when they are seeking funeral services in Boulder. And that starts with getting rid of every supervisor at LPD who approved of the violence in this video, she said. 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.. 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. The video also encourages viewers to contact the city of Loveland and let them know your thoughts on their amazing police department!, The theme across all these assaults is that this is a police department that has no concept of what community safety actually means and entails, Schielke told the Reporter-Herald. Sowl was cited with obstructing a peace officer and resisting arrest, but the charges were later dropped. Be Nice. You have permission to edit this article. Phil Metzler, have been. 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. You can be in the know right alongside Colorados political insiders. 2001 - 2023 Democratic Underground, LLC. 2023 www.coloradoan.com. The departments statement reiterated the outside review it will undergo will includes policies and procedures, overall strategy as well as status, outcomes and claims of current and recent enforcement efforts. The lawsuit states that Officers Wood and Dunlap slammed her into the concrete stairway outside the home and pushed her against a brick wall. An excessive force lawsuit filed against the Loveland Police Department has been settled for nearly $300,000. Austin Hopp, the officer who threw Ms. Garner, pleaded guilty to assaulting her in March and was sentenced to five years in prison. 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. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. / CBS Colorado. Watching my daughter go through this, I mean, I was terrified, Mr. Siers said by phone on Thursday. Photo: Paul Zinken. In Ticer's presentation to the. 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. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, brought in to assess the Loveland Police Department. The Loveland Police Department officers had searched for the daughter, who is identified in the lawsuit only as S.S., after she slapped a boy in a Safeway supermarket parking lot because she believed he had been cheating on her with another girl, the lawsuit states. The suit claims that S.S. was arrested and charged with harassment, domestic violence, obstruction and resisting arrest while Siers was charged with obstructing a police officer and resisting arrest; the suit adds both sets of charges were eventually dismissed. 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. According to the lawsuit, Siers was aware an LPD officer had shot and killed a familys dog in the past year (which Schielke also filed suit over) and wanted to take the dog inside so it was not shot if it bit one of the officers.