Denver, CO
Man body-slammed by off-duty Denver PD officer during 2023 Nuggets celebration files lawsuit
DENVER — A man who was body-slammed by an off-duty Denver Police Department officer while celebrating the Denver Nuggets championship in 2023 filed a lawsuit Wednesday — exactly one year after the incident.
Elijah Smith was among the thousands of fans who were in downtown Denver on June 12, 2023, after the team’s historic win. Smith said he was with a group of people celebrating a friend’s birthday and the championship at Hayter’s & Co. in the city’s Lower Downtown (LoDo) neighborhood.
“They were kicking everyone out because of the shooting that had happened a couple blocks away,” said Smith. “From the corner of my eye, I see one of my friends get sucker-punched. My other friend ran to the other guy and started defending our guy that got punched.”
Smith said he quickly jumped in to also defend his friend when he felt someone pick him up.
“I just feel my body lifted up in the air and I knew I got picked up and slammed on my head. I could feel everything. The pressure in the back of my head is throbbing. It felt like I was dying,” he recalled.
Cell phone video captured the moment Smith was body-slammed by then-Denver Police Officer Adam Glasby.
Glasby had been working an off-duty assignment at Hayter’s & Co. on Blake Street when the group of men started fighting outside the bar, according to the Denver District Attorney’s Office. To break up the fight, Glasby pulled one of the men from the other and, in doing so, took Smith to the ground, knocking him unconscious, according to court documents.
Court documents state Glasby stayed with Smith and provided first aid, including a sternal rub. When Smith regained consciousness, his friends helped him walk away and took him to a hospital.
“It scared me what happened to me. I didn’t want to go to sleep. I didn’t think I was going to wake up,” said Smith.
Glasby was initially charged with second-degree assault with intent to cause bodily injury, a felony. However, he pleaded guilty to third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, in April. His conviction was a POST decertifying offense, meaning he was stripped of his ability to work in a law enforcement capacity in the state of Colorado.
On Wednesday, exactly a year after the assault, Smith’s legal team filed a lawsuit against the City and County of Denver, Glasby and Hayter’s & Co.
“If it hadn’t been for a civilian with a cell phone, this probably would’ve never come to light,” said Smith’s attorney, Mari Newman with Newman|McNulty, LLC. “No matter who he was working for, it was excessive force. The fact that he was in his Denver uniform working as a security guard means Denver is responsible, Hayter’s Bar and Officer Glasby. And that means all three need to be held responsible.”
Smith said he suffered a traumatic brain injury and a back injury. In addition to the physical impacts, he said he suffers from PTSD and is afraid to be out in crowds.
“I’ve been in constant physical therapy. I even took speech therapy because I was stuttering a lot,” he added.
As difficult as it’s been to watch the video of what happened, Smith said he’s glad it all came to light.
“I just want to thank the person who, you know, had the recording from the video,” he said.
Denver7 reached out to the Denver Police Department. A spokesperson said the department does not comment on pending litigation. Glasby resigned from the department on May 2 and the department will continue its Internal Affairs investigation into this incident, per policy, the spokesperson said.
Denver7 reached out to Hayter’s & Co. for a statement but did not hear back as of publication of this article.
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The Denver Broncos are in the market for a running back.
Just two days after NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Denver wants to have the running back position addressed before the draft, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reported that the Broncos are “poised to make a splash” at running back during NFL free agency.
“Denver is the reason why the Jets used the franchise tag on Breece Hall rather than the transition tag, according to sources, making sure Denver wouldn’t get the opportunity to put together an offer the Jets would refuse to match,” Jones wrote for CBS Sports.
Jones said the Broncos would be an obvious potential landing spot for Kenneth Walker, and he noted that Travis Etienne could be a cheaper alternative. The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider also reported this week that Denver is expected to “closely examine” the RB market, and he name-dropped Walker, Etienne and Rico Dowdle.
The Broncos also have an in-house free agent at RB in J.K. Dobbins, who has expressed his desire to remain in Denver. The Broncos can begin negotiating with pending free agents from other clubs on March 9, but no deals can become official until the new league year begins on March 11. In-house free agents can be re-signed at any time.
Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — The Class 5A Sweet 16 has arrived, and both Grand Junction and Palisade are still standing with trips to the Great Eight in Denver on the line.
At The Jungle, the No. 2 seed Grand Junction Tigers set the tone early against No. 18 Golden. Defense carried the Tigers from the opening tip as they held the Demons to nine first quarter points while scoring 16 of their own.
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Grand Junction added eight points in the second quarter while Golden managed six, sending the Tigers into halftime with a nine point lead.
Golden responded in the third quarter, outscoring Grand Junction 16 to 11 to cut the deficit to five entering the fourth. The Tigers answered in the final period, attacking the rim and converting key shots to win the quarter 19 to 10. Grand Junction secured a 54 to 41 victory to protect its home court and advance to the Great Eight in Denver.
Top seeded Palisade also defended its home floor with a trip to Denver at stake. The Bulldogs opened with nine straight points to energize a packed gym, but Frederick settled in and closed the first quarter on a run to tie the game at nine.
Frederick continued to respond in the second quarter and took an eight point lead into halftime.
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Palisade shifted momentum after the break. The Bulldogs tightened defensively, holding Frederick to 21 points in the second half while scoring 39 of their own. Palisade completed the comeback to advance to the Great Eight.
Colorado Mesa University Women Deliver Historic RMAC Tournament Win
In collegiate action, the top seeded Colorado Mesa University women’s basketball team defeated Colorado School of Mines 96 to 51 in the RMAC Tournament, marking the largest margin of victory in the tournament this century.
Olivia Reed-Thyne led the Mavericks with 34 points on 11 of 15 shooting, her third 30 point performance this season. Mason Rowland added 22 points and Hallie Clark contributed 10 as Colorado Mesa matched a program record with its 31st win. The Mavericks will host the semifinals Friday with a berth in the championship game at stake.
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Colorado Mesa University Men Survive Overtime Thriller
The Colorado Mesa University men’s basketball team faced New Mexico Highlands University for the third time this season. The Mavericks scored 36 first half points and led by four at the break.
New Mexico Highlands shot 50 percent in the second half, received 21 bench points and outscored Colorado Mesa 43 to 39 to force a late push. With the season in the balance, Ty Allred hit a game tying 3 pointer to make it 75 and send the game to overtime. Allred scored seven points in the extra period as Colorado Mesa earned a 91 to 90 victory to advance to the next round.
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