Denver police brutality scandal: A multimedia timeline


September 15, 2010: In response to City Council inquiries, the City Attorney's office announces that Denver has spent nearly $6.2 million since 2004 to settle lawsuits involving police officers, a number the office says has remained fairly static.

September 19, 2010: Denver police announce that in the previous month, officer-initiated investigations declined by nearly 25 percent from the year before, a drop that some officers attributed to fears about losing their jobs if other media controversies break out.

abbe dorn in illegal streetgear.jpg
Abbe Dorn.
September 23, 2010: Rohit Mukherjee files a lawsuit alleging that he was brutalized in his home on April 10, 2010 by three Denver officers -- one of whom was Abbegayle Dorn, a former American Gladiator candidate.

October 2010: Two police internal affairs officers, Bryan O'Neill and Daren Ciempa, are reassigned after secretly filming internal affairs head John Burbach with a video recorder disguised as a pocket pen, apparently to prove Burbach was biased against his officers.

January 12, 2011: New Denver mayor Bill Vidal indicates at his swearing-in ceremony that police brutality concerns will be one of the top priorities of his administration. Soon after, he promises to resolve all ongoing cases of alleged police misconduct before he leaves office in July.

January 12, 2011: Community College of Denver student Alexander Landau files a lawsuit alleging that he was pulled over for an illegal left turn on January 15, 2009 and beaten him bloody with flashlights and a police radio. One of the officers was Randy Murr, who was also involved in the DeHerrera incident. Landau was eventually taken to Denver Health to be treated for a broken nose, lacerations and closed head injuries -- but not before he demanded somebody take photos of him:

Alexander Landau police beating 1.JPG

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2 comments
Harrisdanyelle
Harrisdanyelle

 As a reporter isn't your job to get both sides of the story. In your article the president of the Police Protective Association mentions information that has yet to be released regarding the controversial "beating" of DeHerrera.  Why has that information not been made public?  Why hasn't the media chased that story?  Because it is not politically correct to do so?  Where are the facts of this case and where are all the legitimate reporters?  

Robert
Robert

At the mayoral forum on police accountability, none of the eight candidates endorsed independent investigation of citizens' complaints against police.  This would only require that a minority of investigative positions within the Denver Police Department's Internal Affairs Bureau be transferred to an independent agency (since most complaints against police officers are lodged by other officers).  Instead, we rely on the sham system of oversight Hickenlooper instituted two years ago -- a "Citizen Oversight Board", which has no authority over the imposition of discipline, and consists of the Mayor's friends, and an "Independent Monitor", who also has no authority over the imposition of discipline, and serves at the Mayor's pleasure.  Why won't Denver's pols even consider a system of independent investigation of police misconduct which has worked in San Francisco for thirty years?

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