Aurora officer being investigated for use of force; Body cam video shows handcuffed suspect being thrown to ground
CBS News Colorado has obtained Aurora police body cam video of an incident showing a use-of-force incident by an Aurora police officer that has led to a criminal investigation by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The incident took place Aug. 14 at an Aurora hospital. CBS News Colorado began inquiring about the incident earlier this month and Aurora police released body cam footage from three officers Thursday afternoon.
In three video clips, each approximately 2 minutes long, a suspect identified by officers as "Jesus" is being escorted out of the hospital with his hands handcuffed behind his back. The officer walking with the man says "stop resisting" and then quickly forces the man to the ground. Blood immediately starts seeping from the suspect's head. Aurora police say the incident led to "facial injuries" for the suspect.
Why is the video just coming out now?
Aurora police tell CBS News Colorado their Force Investigation Unit did not conduct a preliminary review of the August incident until mid-January "due to the initial classification" and "caseload." APD says after the preliminary review, the case was elevated and the Chief of Police was notified.
The primary officer who threw the suspect down was placed on "restricted duty" on Feb. 2. An internal investigation was then launched and the CBI was asked to do a separate criminal investigation.
Both the criminal and internal investigations are ongoing, according to APD.
Aurora police say the case has led to changes in their department to avoid delays, like the one that occurred in this case. All use of force incidents will now be immediately investigated said the department and other steps will be taken to address such incidents.
"In the past, when an officer was accused of a crime, the practice has been to wait until the criminal investigation was completed and adjudicated before launching an internal investigation. That is not a good practice," Aurora Police Chief Art Acevedo said. "We will now conduct a parallel internal affairs investigation and take our own independent action based on our findings."
Videos of the incident can be seen below. Be warned that some of the video shows violence including blood on a floor and is disturbing to watch.
