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

Almost two years after violently arresting a 73-year-old girl with dementia, former Colorado police officer Austin Hopp was sentenced to five 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 charge that was punishable by 2 to 8 years in jail. That avoided the minimal 10 to 30 or extra years in prison he would have faced with a trial and conviction.

Hopp first encountered Garner after being dispatched to a report of an attempted theft at a Loveland Walmart, according to CBS Denver. Garner, who has dementia, allegedly tried to steal less than $15 price of goods from the shop. When confronted by Walmart staff, she returned the objects and walked out of the store.

Body digicam footage from Hopp confirmed the officer approaching Garner as she walked dwelling. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she failed to adjust to a number of orders to stop. Hopp is then seen grabbing Garner by the arm and forcefully taking her to the bottom, 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 stated. An audible pop is heard on the digicam, something Hopp acknowledged hearing in footage later released by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility at the Loveland Police Department, the place she complained a number of times about having accidents, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly pressured to take a seat in a holding cell with out medical consideration for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and one other workers were heard on safety footage acknowledging that she may have injuries.

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

As first reported by CBS Denver, the Larimer County District Lawyer's Workplace elected to move forward with a plea agreement against the will of the Garner household. The household felt the video within the case proved Hopp was guilty on all counts beyond a reasonable doubt.