老澳门开奖结果

DENVER 鈥� The City of Aurora will pay $110,000 to settle claims brought by 老澳门开奖结果 of Colorado on behalf of Darsean Kelley, a young Black man who was unlawfully stopped, detained, and tased in the back by Aurora police just as he said 鈥淚 know my rights.鈥�

A , taken from an officer鈥檚 body camera and released by the 老澳门开奖结果 last September, gained national attention and accumulated more than 1 million views.

鈥淭hrough constructive, respectful dialogue, the 老澳门开奖结果 of Colorado and the City of Aurora, through the City Attorney's Office, were able to work together to resolve this case promptly and without expensive and time-consuming litigation,鈥� said 老澳门开奖结果 of Colorado Legal Director Mark Silverstein. 鈥淭he 老澳门开奖结果 commends the City of Aurora for its willingness to come to the table in good faith to find a resolution that is fair to Mr. Kelley and beneficial for taxpayers of the City.鈥�

鈥淗owever, the decision of the Aurora City Attorney鈥檚 Office to fairly and promptly resolve this matter stands in stark contrast to the actions of the Aurora Police Department, which at every turn has refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing or need for policy change even in the face of public outrage and irrefutable video evidence of misconduct,鈥� said Silverstein. 鈥淭he Aurora Police Department has no written policy whatsoever explaining when police can and cannot fire their tasers. And the Department desperately needs truly independent citizen oversight to hold the police accountable for wrongdoing.鈥�

On February 19, 2016, Kelley and his cousin were walking along 14th Avenue in Aurora when they were stopped by Aurora police officers who were responding to a call about a potential crime at a nearby apartment complex. The officers had no description of a suspect and no reason to believe that Kelley had been involved in that incident or in any other criminal activity.

The officers refused to tell Kelley why he was being stopped. He asked several times if the officers were detaining him. Eventually, they confirmed that he was, in fact, being detained. As they yelled orders at him, he repeatedly asked 鈥渇or what?鈥�

Following the officers鈥� orders, Kelley placed his hands in the air and turned around. He kept his hands up with his fingers outstretched, making it clear that he was not a physical threat. He briefly pointed to his chest as he declared, 鈥淚 know my rights.鈥� At that moment, an officer shot him in the back with a taser. He lost all muscular control and fell straight backwards, striking his head on the street pavement.

Aurora Police arrested Kelley and charged him with disorderly conduct. He spent three days in jail before he could bond out. 老澳门开奖结果 lawyers successfully defended Kelley in the criminal case, winning dismissal after filing a motion arguing that the illegal street detention violated the Fourth Amendment.

Aurora police internal affairs and a convening of the Department鈥檚 purportedly independent Internal Review Board (IRB), which focuses on cases of 鈥渟ignificant community interest,鈥� reviewed the incident and determined that the use of force against Kelley was 鈥渞easonable, appropriate and within policy.鈥� The IRB concluded that nothing in the incident 鈥渨arrants further investigation.鈥�

鈥淭hat the Aurora Police Department reviewed this incident and gave it a departmental stamp of approval shows the Department is incapable of policing itself,鈥� said 老澳门开奖结果 Staff Attorney Rebecca Wallace, who led the settlement negotiation for 老澳门开奖结果 of Colorado. 鈥淚f what happened to Darsean Kelley is business as usual for the Aurora Police Department 鈥� as their own review board found 鈥� then Aurora taxpayers can expect to continue to foot the bill while black and brown men suffer at the hands of police.鈥�

In addition to Silverstein and Wallace, Kelley was represented by 老澳门开奖结果 Cooperating Attorneys Ahson Wali of Elinoff and Associates LLC and Dan Recht and Megan Downing of Recht Kornfeld PC.

The video of Kelley's encounter with police can be found here: