Deputy Not Punished For Grabbing Man's Testicles
DENVER (AP) -- A Mesa County deputy who grabbed a man's testicles to subdue him was using reasonable force, even though it was unorthodox, the sheriff's office said.
Sheriff's deputy Hassan Hassan wrote in an arrest affidavit that Samuel Fazio, 22, quit resisting after the deputy grabbed Fazio's genitals for a few seconds. Hassan noted that the actions happened Monday when Fazio fought attempts to be handcuffed.
Fazio was charged with second-degree assault and resisting arrest after deputies said he hit the deputy in the mouth with his elbow.
Sheriff's spokeswoman Heather Benjamin said Thursday the use of force was reasonable, even though it's not part of police training. Fazio was not injured, she said.
Deputies are taught to make the suspect compliant as soon as reasonably possible. The decision was reviewed by superior officers and they determined there were no violations of police policy, Benjamin said.
"It's a reasonable tactic in this situation," she said.
The story was first reported by the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.
Benjamin said the same rules would apply to women, though she noted it probably would not work for a woman. Use of force is reviewed on a case by case basis, she said.
Fazio was being sought on warrants alleging child abuse, criminal impersonation and driving on a revoked driver's license when his mother called and reported he had returned home to Cliffton, Benjamin said.
After the arrest, the man was checked out by the department's medical staff and they determined he was not injured, she said.
Fazio could file a complaint against the deputy, which would be reviewed by the department's internal affairs division, but that hasn't happened, Benjamin said.
"He may have had an epiphany that he might not have been compliant," she said.
By Steven K. Paulson, AP Writer (Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
