Denver, CO
Man receives $350,000 settlement after incident with Denver PD during 2020 protest of encampment sweep
DENVER — It is a day Michael Jacobs, 26, will always remember.
“There’s a variety of emotions which might be floating round in my physique,” he advised Denver7.
On July 29, 2020, Jacobs says he was attacked by a number of Denver Police Division officers throughout the protest of a homeless encampment sweep. Now, he is respiration a sigh of reduction.
“I really feel like I’m feeling peace in my bones for the primary time in a very long time,” mentioned Jacobs.
Denver Metropolis Council on Monday unanimously accredited a movement to pay Jacobs $350,000 to settle a lawsuit introduced final yr towards 15 officers and former Police Chief Paul Pazen.
Jacobs was rattling a chain-link fence at Lincoln Park when he says officers tackled him. Physique cam footage reveals an officer operating towards Jacobs after which a number of officers holding him down.
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“I used to be hit behind the pinnacle. I used to be making an attempt to recuperate, get my bearings and was punched within the face. I had a baton shoved up my anus,” mentioned Jacobs. “Going into the bodily accidents nearly pales compared to the emotional trauma that I went by that day.”
In a possible trigger assertion, Denver PD claimed Jacobs was a part of a gaggle making an attempt to push down a gate at Lincoln Park and added they managed to convey it down and get inside. However within the video, Jacobs is outdoors of the fence.
“I feel that is what drove the settlement is that they know they must clarify this to a jury of Denver residents, and it simply is not justifiable,” mentioned Felipe Bohnet-Gomez, Jacobs’ legal professional.
Denver PD declined to touch upon the settlement, however issued an announcement saying the officer who used his baton didn’t violate the division’s use-of-force coverage.
“The Denver Police Division Inside Affairs Bureau investigated this incident and the officer who used his baton was not discovered to have violated the Division’s Use of Pressure coverage, although by the investigation it was decided that very same officer did not make, file or full official studies in violation of DPD Guidelines and Laws [denvergov.org] 607. Extra violations found throughout this IA investigation embody:
- Three supervisors had been discovered to have violated the coverage relating to Criticism and Self-discipline for Sworn Officers (Coverage 503.01 in DPD Operations Guide [denvergov.org]) leading to written reprimands.
- One of many supervisors additionally acquired an oral reprimand associated to violation of body-worn digicam insurance policies”
Jacobs says he hopes this settlement units an instance for others.
“I hope this story encourages anybody else who’s been wronged to hunt justice for themselves. I hope that somebody seeing me have the ability to rise up and converse out encourages them to harness their voice in the best way I’ve,” he mentioned.
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