A former Colorado police officer has been sentenced to five years in prison for the violent arrest of a 73-year-old woman with dementia. The elderly woman suffered a broken arm, a sprained wrist and a dislocated shoulder during the arrest.
Karen Garner went to a grocery store in Loveland in June 2020 where she bought items for $14. However, according to her lawyer, she forgot to pay due to her memory impairment. Although store staff recovered the items from the woman, the police were called. The seventy-year-old was picked off the road by police officer Austin Hopp as she was walking home. Because she refused to follow his orders—presumably because she didn’t understand them—he knocked her to the ground to handcuff her.
Footage of the violent arrest caused a stir at the time, especially since CCTV footage taken moments later at the police station showed Austin Hopp and other colleagues laughing as they replayed the scene.
The officer pleaded guilty to assault during his trial and apologized to the Garner family. According to Judge Michelle Brinegar, this was not just a mistake, but of a young cop who abused his position of power and authority.
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