Ex-officer sentenced to 5 years in prison for violent arrest of 73-year-old lady

Almost two years after violently arresting a 73-year-old woman with dementia, former Colorado police officer Austin Hopp was sentenced to 5 years in jail on Thursday as a part of a plea settlement to reduce his jail time. The June 2020 arrest left Karen Garner with a broken arm, sprained wrist and separated shoulder, CBS Denver reported.

In Larimer County Court docket in early March, Hopp pleaded guilty to an assault cost that was punishable by 2 to 8 years in prison. That averted the minimal 10 to 30 or extra years in prison he would have confronted with a trial and conviction.

Hopp first encountered Garner after being dispatched to a report of an attempted theft at a Loveland Walmart, in line with CBS Denver. Garner, who has dementia, allegedly tried to steal lower than $15 price of products from the store. When confronted by Walmart workers, she returned the items and walked out of the shop.

Body digicam footage from Hopp confirmed the officer approaching Garner as she walked home. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she didn't comply with multiple orders to stop. Hopp is then seen grabbing Garner by the arm and forcefully taking her to the ground, CBS Denver reported.

As fellow officer Daria Jalali responded to the scene, Hopp allegedly separated Garner's shoulder by forcing her arm behind her again and up near her shoulder blades, CBS Denver mentioned. An audible pop is heard on the digital camera, something Hopp acknowledged hearing in footage later released by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility on the Loveland Police Division, where she complained a number of times about having injuries, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly pressured to sit in a holding cell without medical attention for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and one other employees had been heard on safety footage acknowledging that she could have accidents.

After a quick investigation, Hopp resigned from the Loveland Police Department, as did Jalali. Each had been arrested and charged with crimes associated to Garner's arrest.

As first reported by CBS Denver, the Larimer County District Legal professional's Workplace elected to move ahead with a plea agreement in opposition to the will of the Garner household. The family felt the video in the case proved Hopp was guilty on all counts past a reasonable doubt.