Denver, CO
‘I’ll never be the person that I was’: Denver police recruit recalls ‘brutal hazing’
![‘I’ll never be the person that I was’: Denver police recruit recalls ‘brutal hazing’ ‘I’ll never be the person that I was’: Denver police recruit recalls ‘brutal hazing’](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/08/29/USAT/74990108007-image-34.jpeg?auto=webp&crop=971,546,x0,y256&format=pjpg&width=1200)
Former Denver Police Department recruit Victor Moses spoke with USA TODAY about his lawsuit against the department and what happened the terrible day that a training drill cost him his legs.
Victor Moses knew he wanted to be a police officer in middle school.
He was introduced to the profession while he was growing up in Tallahassee, Florida in 2005, when he would see a neighbor’s friend who worked for the Tallahassee Police Department coming and going from the job.
“I just enjoyed hearing her tell her stories and seeing her,” Moses recently told USA TODAY in an interview. “I was always intrigued as a child just watching her and seeing the police car.”
But tragedy struck not long after Moses decided to pursue his dream of becoming an officer 18 years later. And it’s a dream that may never come true.
During a training exercise while he was a recruit for the Denver Police Department, Moses says that department officials and paramedics forced him to participate in “Fight Day,” a “brutal hazing ritual” that cost Moses both his legs, according to the a lawsuit filed about a month ago.
The lawsuit alleges that Moses’ mistreatment during the training was the culmination of a “culture of violence, hazing, and training that causes unnecessary injuries among recruits,” pointing to a 2014 incident where a trainer allegedly threatened to, “slap the (expletive) out of” the recruit and put the recruit in a chokehold.
“I wish I would have gone further into research,” said Moses, 29. “One shouldn’t have to apply to a police academy and say ‘Am I going to be in danger at an academy?’”
What happened during police training?
On Jan. 6, 2023, Moses was participating in a so-called dynamic action drill during Denver police academy training, according to the lawsuit, which says the drill involves four stations intended to teach future officers how to escalate and de-escalate force. It’s also known as “Fight Day” in the department, the lawsuit says.
At the second station, Moses was knocked to the ground, hit his head and passed out in a simulated attack by multiple department personnel, the lawsuit says. The personnel then forced Moses to his feet to continue the drill until he passed out again when an officer called paramedics over, the lawsuit says.
Moses told the paramedics that he was “extremely fatigued” and experiencing “extreme leg cramping,” a sign of distress in people with sickle cell trait, something Moses informed the department he had in a police application form, the lawsuit says.
Although paramedics found that Moses’ blood pressure was extremely low, they cleared him to continue training, the lawsuit says. But, it continues, Moses was so exhausted that officers had to bring him to the third station, a ground-fighting drill during which an officer put his body weight on Moses, causing the recruit to say, “I can’t breathe,” before he became unresponsive.
“I felt something I’ve never felt before,” Moses said. “It’s really hard to explain, like, how it feels like to die, and I’ve never had that, but I felt what death feels like.”
What happened to Victor Moses after the training drill?
Moses was taken to a hospital. He required multiple surgeries to save his life, had to have his legs amputated and was hospitalized for four months, according to the suit.
Moses says he didn’t really understand the extent of his injuries at first because of how heavily medicated he was.
“When they started weaning down on the drugs, I felt, ‘Why am I still here? Why am I not home, what’s going on?’” Moses said, with the traces of pain evident in his voice. “You’re just in pain, your parents are there for some reason and it was just living hell. It really became real to me when my classmates were visiting me and started explaining what happened and then you see your rotting body.”
Denver Police did not respond to a request for comment.
Lawsuit accuses paramedics of lying to doctors
Moses’ lawsuit includes multiple text exchanges from recruits who were there during the training that day Moses was hurt.
“What got me was the lack of attention from the paramedics, they should have stepped in way sooner and stopped it,” then-recruit Zachary Vasquez said in a group chat, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that paramedics with Denver Health lied to doctors at the hospital, denying that there was a “significant traumatic mechanism of injury,” causing Moses’ care to be compromised.
“I mean the bulk of us witnessed him fall headfirst on the tile, they don’t have much of an argument against it,” Vasquez said in the group chat, the lawsuit says.
Moses developed severe compartment syndrome, rhabdomyolysis, malignant hyperthermia, and severe hyperkalemia in the hospital, according to the lawsuit.
The paramedics helped “enable continued violence and brutality, holding the gate open for additional infliction of trauma even if the recruit has been rendered unconscious,” according to Darold Killmer, Moses’ attorney.
The lawsuit alleges the department continued to cover up their actions, telling news media at the time that Moses’ injuries were caused by undisclosed conditions.
Denver Health declined to comment but pointed to a previous statement to USA TODAY saying that “safety and well-being is a top priority for Denver Health and its paramedics.”
Moses willing to return to policing
Moses told USA TODAY that despite the traumatic incident, he would be willing to work in or around the policing profession in the future.
“I will always support the police. There’s so many good police officers out there,” Moses said. “Yes, my life was ruined, I was turned permanently disabled. But it doesn’t negate the fact that there are a lot of good cops out there. It’s just unfortunate when the actions of a bad police officer, in this case, a group of bad officers, overshadow their work.”
If returning to a police force is not possible, Moses would consider being an advocate for police recruits.
“I know what it’s like, it’s a six-month commitment. It’s not easy. And God forbid if there was ever any other hazing in the future” Moses said. “All police start as a recruit and it’s really important to have good police recruits that aren’t abused and demoralized.”
Moses underwent his most recent surgery in July and continues to recover from his injuries.
“I never feel like it will never be a 100% recovery,” Moses said. “Yes, I’m doing therapy but I’ll never be who I was when I woke up the morning of January 6. I’ll never be that person that I was.”
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Denver, CO
Broncos, Pat Surtain II Impacted by Falcons CB A.J. Terrell’s Mega-Extension
![Broncos, Pat Surtain II Impacted by Falcons CB A.J. Terrell’s Mega-Extension Broncos, Pat Surtain II Impacted by Falcons CB A.J. Terrell’s Mega-Extension](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_8414,h_4732,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/mile_high_huddle/01j6r4pcbt7gv6x2ndyq.jpg)
One extension Denver Broncos fans may be expecting the team to announce in the near future is that of 2021 first-round pick Patrick Surtain II. As one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL, it’s not hard to figure out that the Broncos need to keep him.
One argument for getting Surtain extended sooner than later is that the Broncos can avoid the rising costs in the cornerback market. I have previously discussed, though, that it’s not exactly the case that other cornerbacks have re-set the market.
But another cornerback who entered the final year of his contract got extended in recent weeks. The Atlanta Falcons agreed to a four-year deal with A.J. Terrell, the team’s 2020 first-round pick.
Terrell got a four-year, $81 million deal with $42.344M fully guaranteed upon signing. He got $65.844M in total guarantees and $53.5M in new guarantees.
The new guarantees are important to note because Terrell was due $12.344M in fully guaranteed salary for 2024, after the Falcons exercised the fifth-year option in his rookie deal. Still, the new guarantees matter, along with full and total guarantees, in figuring out how this contract might impact the negotiations for a Surtain extension.
For starters, while Terrell got near the top in APY salary, he didn’t re-set the market in that aspect. His $20.25M APY salary trails that of Jaire Alexander at $21M. It does represent an increase over the APY salary for L’Jarius Sneed at $19.1M.
Also, Terrell’s APY salary exceeds that of Denzel Ward at $20.1M, but did not exceed Ward’s contract in other aspects. Ward got $44.5M in fully guaranteed money and $71.25M in total guarantees.
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In other words, Ward still holds the highest marks for guaranteed money, whether full or total guarantees. Thus, those numbers are still the ones Surtain is poised to surpass.
While APY salary can be useful, and it’s likely Surtain will set a new benchmark for APY salary, that isn’t the mark to beat above all else. Full guarantees, total guarantees and new guarantees matter just as much.
Currently, Surtain is due a little more than $3.5M for 2024 and $19.8M for 2025, the latter coming from the fifth-year option the Broncos picked up. If he were to sign a contract during the season, that guaranteed money will be part of the new deal.
Consequently, Surtain and his agent are certain to seek a significant sum of new guarantees. If we assume Surtain was to sign that deal this season and match Terrell’s $53.5M in new guarantees, Surtain would be looking at $76.8M in total guarantees. That would easily surpass Ward’s total guarantees.
However, it wouldn’t surprise if Surtain and his agent would seek to surpass the new guarantees Terrell got. If Surtain got $55M in new guarantees, that would mean he gets more than $78M in total guarantees.
If the Broncos wait until after the season to extend Surtain, the $3.5M he is due this season wouldn’t apply to the extension. Only the fifth-year option of $19.8M would apply. If we assume $55M in new guarantees in a deal signed in 2025, that gives Surtain $74.8M in total guarantees, which still easily surpasses what Ward got.
Simply put, Surtain is likely to be the cornerback who actually re-sets the market in every aspect. And while it would be great to see him sign a deal sooner than later, how soon he signs an extension won’t change the fact that he’s certain to become the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL by any aspect you consider.
So while the Terrell extension may impact negotiations for a Surtain deal to some degree, Ward’s contract matters just as much in negotiations. It’s easy to look at the wide receiver market and think that somebody is going to do a massive re-set like Justin Jefferson, but among young cornerbacks eligible for extensions, none of them are as talented as Surtain.
If anybody does truly re-set the cornerback market, Surtain is that player. The only question is how soon he and the Broncos come to terms on that new deal.
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Denver, CO
The Class of 2028 Arrives | University of Denver
![The Class of 2028 Arrives | University of Denver The Class of 2028 Arrives | University of Denver](https://www.du.edu/sites/default/files/article-thumbnail/du-move-in-day-2023-8740.jpg)
On Sept. 3, the University of Denver opens its doors to its newest class of undergraduate students. On Move-In Day, approximately 1,350 students and their families will descend on campus to get settled in, with most traveling more than 500 miles to get here.
The students in the Class of 2028 represent a wide swath of the U.S.—coming from 47 states—and the world, including 35 countries. Geographically, the largest percentage comes from Colorado (30%), followed by states in the West (18%), Midwest (17%), Northeast (14%), Southwest (12%) and Southeast (5%). The top home cities outside of Colorado are Chicago, Austin, Portland, Minneapolis, Santa Fe, Houston, St. Louis, St. Paul, Dallas and Albuquerque.
This outstanding group of undergrads, who were selected from more than 19,000 applicants, have an average high school GPA of 3.76 and, of those who included their test scores on their applications, average ACT and SAT scores of 30 and 1281, respectively.
The University continues to recruit a diverse class of students, with 30% identifying as a member of an ethnic group other than white and 4% coming from abroad. First-generation students make up 19% of the incoming class. In addition to the first-year students, 160 transfer students will start at DU this fall.
Finally, DU welcomes four Boettcher scholars, six Daniels Fund recipients and 27 Davis scholars. The Boettcher Scholarship is a merit-based scholarship awarded to 50 Colorado high school students each year. The Daniels Fund provides merit- and need-based, four-year scholarships to students from Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico. The Davis United World College Scholars program gives scholarships to students around the world to study in the U.S.
Join us in welcoming all of our new first years!
Denver, CO
Details Emerge on Broncos’ Decision Not to Trade Courtland Sutton
![Details Emerge on Broncos’ Decision Not to Trade Courtland Sutton Details Emerge on Broncos’ Decision Not to Trade Courtland Sutton](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_5022,h_2824,x_0,y_246/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/mile_high_huddle/01j6npwpjqt9619ba4rp.jpg)
Recently, the San Francisco 49ers extended disgrunteled wide receiver Brando Aiyuk after months of trade speculation, and along the way, the Denver Broncos were linked. According to reports by ESPN’s Dianna Russini and Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the Broncos were involved in a potential trade that never was.
We learned after the extension that the Niners wanted a receiver to replace Aiyuk, if he were to be traded, and they had their eyes on Courtland Sutton, the Broncos’ top wide receiver. To feel comfortable making the trade, the Niners were reportedly willing to give Denver a third-round pick for Sutton.
When you add in Breer’s report, the pick to be exchanged would’ve been a Niners’ third-round pick by way of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The question is, did the Broncos make the right decision?
In order to answer that question, we must examine all the details that have emerged since Aiyuk’s extension knocked loose a lot of new information. Let’s dive in.
The Broncos moved on from Tim Patrick to ease their log jam at wide receiver and create an avenue for younger receivers like Devaughn Vele, Troy Franklin, and Marvin Mims Jr. to see the field. Releasing Patrick wasn’t a move to help the salary cap situation since the Broncos ate $6 million in dead money while saving a little over $1.1 million in cap space. It was about the log jam at the position.
Sutton has the second-highest cap hit on the Broncos roster, at a hair under $17.3 million, behind left tackle Garett Bolles. Sutton was unsatisfied with his contract, and for months, the Broncos were unwilling to rework his deal.
However, the two sides finally came to an agreement on some bonuses that were considered unlikely to be earned. The fact that they are unlikely to be earned matters a ton here.
When performance bonuses are handed out, they’re dubbed unlikely or likely to be earned based on a player’s track record. If they’re likely to be earned, they’ll count against the current year’s salary cap, and if they go unearned, the team will re-gain that cap space the following season.
As unlikely bonuses, they count against the following year’s salary cap if earned. This is important in this situation with Sutton.
The Broncos wouldn’t be on the hook for any of the money unless he earned those bonuses. If he were with the Niners and earned them, it would go against their salary cap. With no new guaranteed money, the Broncos would save $9.6 million against the salary cap with $7.6 million in dead money.
Had the Broncos traded Sutton, this would likely have kept Patrick on the roster. Remember, Patrick represents roughly $6 million in dead money while freeing up $1.1 million.
Trading Sutton would’ve added $1.6 million more in dead money, but it would have freed up $8.5 million more in usable cap space, which could’ve also been used to roll over into the 2025 season. The Broncos will still be dealing with Russell Wilson’s dead cap hit, so an extra $8.5 million could be useful.
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The other fact here is the additional third-round pick, which, according to Breer, would’ve been from the Steelers. It’s impossible to predict where that third-round pick would end up, but let’s look at where different publications projected them.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season, and the defense they have is excellent, so most outlets view them as a nine or 10-win team. NFL.com had Pittsburgh tied with the Broncos as the 11th team in the AFC, but no record was given.
USA TODAY had the Steelers at 10-7, as did Sports Illustrated. I was unable to find a Steelers record prediction from ESPN or other national sites. That record would have put that pick Denver would have garnered from San Francisco for Sutton at around pick at No. 85 overall or the 20th or 21st pick in the third round. That’s better than if the pick was coming from the Niners, who are projected to be in the late 90s, as they’re one of the favorites to contend for a Super Bowl this year.
The final fact to consider is the uncertainty of Sutton’s future with the team. There was a chance for the Broncos to rework his deal, which could’ve included an extension to secure his future with the team for at least a couple more seasons, but the team passed on that.
Rumors have been circulating about the Broncos wanting to move on from Sutton for almost three years. So, that’s important to remember when talking about the uncertainty of his standing with the team in future years.
The Broncos had a chance to proceed with Patrick, an extra third-round pick, and an additional $8.5 million in salary cap space, but they passed on that avenue. Would that have been better than having only Sutton for the 2024 season with uncertainty beyond 2025, the final year of his deal?
The Broncos are betting that Sutton’s worth more to them on the team than all those other resources combined, and only time will tell whether they made the right decision.
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