Two ex-Loveland, Colorado, police officers have been charged over the rough arrest of a 73-year-old woman with dementia last year.
The arrest took place back on June 26, 2020, and saw 73-year-old Karen Garner stopped by former officers Austin Hopp and Daria Jalali.
According to ABC News, bodycam footage of the arrest shows Hopp, 26, telling Garner: "Right now you're resisting, which is not going to fly with me."
Garner was then manhandled and forcibly taken to the ground, in an arrest that left her with "a dislocated shoulder, fractured arm and sprained wrist", according to her attorney, Sarah Schielke.
Per NBC News, Schielke later revealed that Garner was stopped by Hopp after reports that she had stolen $13.88 worth of items from a nearby Walmart. The lawyer has since stated that due to Garner's dementia, she forgot to pay for the items - which were later returned to Walmart employees.
Additionally, Schielke says that she struggled to communicate with the officers due to Garner's dementia and sensory aphasia. Throughout the bodycam footage, Garner can be heard repeating the phrase: "I'm going home."
ABC News has since reported that Hopp has been charged with second-degree assault causing serious bodily injury and attempt to influence a public servant, both felonies.
The charges were announced on Wednesday (May 19) by District Attorney Gordon McLaughlin. Hopp was also charged with official misconduct, a misdemeanor.
McLaughlin also revealed that fellow responding officer Jalali, 27, had been charged with three misdemeanors for failure to report use of force by a peace officer, failure to intervene, and first-degree official misconduct.
Jalali's prosecution came after a new police reform law that allows officers to be penalized if they fail to intervene when another officer is using excessive force.
"Without the new law, it would have been more difficult to prosecute," McLaughlin said.
Further surveillance footage recently made headlines after appearing to show Hopp, Jalali, and Community Services Officer Tyler Blackett rewatching the arrest and laughing.
Per CBS News, that footage shows Hopp asking his fellow officers "Ready for the pop?" and "Hear the pop?" as he arrested Garner.
When Blackett asks Hopp what popped, and the ex-officer replies: "I think it was her shoulder."
Blackett resigned from the department along with Hopp and Jalali earlier this month.
In a statement over the recent charges, McLaughlin said: "I hope today can be a step towards rebuilding trust in the criminal justice community."
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