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

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

In Larimer County Court docket in early March, Hopp pleaded responsible to an assault cost that was punishable by 2 to eight years in jail. That prevented 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 keeping with CBS Denver. Garner, who has dementia, allegedly tried to steal less than $15 worth of goods from the shop. When confronted by Walmart employees, she returned the gadgets and walked out of the shop.

Body digicam footage from Hopp showed the officer approaching Garner as she walked home. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she failed to adjust to multiple orders to cease. 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 close to her shoulder blades, CBS Denver stated. An audible pop is heard on the digital camera, something Hopp acknowledged listening to in footage later released by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility on the Loveland Police Department, the place she complained a number of times about having accidents, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly pressured to sit down in a holding cell with out medical attention for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and another staff have been heard on security footage acknowledging that she may have injuries.

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

As first reported by CBS Denver, the Larimer County District Attorney's Workplace elected to move forward with a plea agreement in opposition to the desire of the Garner family. The household felt the video in the case proved Hopp was guilty on all counts beyond an inexpensive doubt.