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

Practically two years after violently arresting a 73-year-old woman with dementia, former Colorado police officer Austin Hopp was sentenced to five years in jail on Thursday as a part of a plea agreement to lessen 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 charge that was punishable by 2 to 8 years in jail. That avoided the minimal 10 to 30 or more 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 accordance with CBS Denver. Garner, who has dementia, allegedly tried to steal less than $15 price of goods from the store. When confronted by Walmart employees, she returned the gadgets and walked out of the shop.

Physique camera footage from Hopp confirmed the officer approaching Garner as she walked dwelling. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she failed to comply with a number of 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 back and up close to her shoulder blades, CBS Denver said. An audible pop is heard on the camera, something Hopp acknowledged listening to in footage later launched by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility at the Loveland Police Department, where she complained multiple times about having accidents, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly pressured to sit in a holding cell without medical consideration for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and one other employees were heard on security footage acknowledging that she might have accidents.

After a short investigation, Hopp resigned from the Loveland Police Division, as did Jalali. Each were arrested and charged with crimes related to Garner's arrest.

As first reported by CBS Denver, the Larimer County District Lawyer's Office elected to maneuver ahead with a plea settlement towards the need of the Garner household. The family felt the video in the case proved Hopp was responsible on all counts beyond an inexpensive doubt.