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

Almost two years after violently arresting a 73-year-old lady with dementia, former Colorado police officer Austin Hopp was sentenced to 5 years in jail on Thursday as 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 Courtroom in early March, Hopp pleaded guilty to an assault charge that was punishable by 2 to eight years in jail. That averted the minimal 10 to 30 or extra years in jail 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 line with CBS Denver. Garner, who has dementia, allegedly tried to steal lower than $15 worth of products from the shop. When confronted by Walmart workers, she returned the objects and walked out of the shop.

Body camera footage from Hopp showed the officer approaching Garner as she walked house. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she did not adjust to a number of 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 near her shoulder blades, CBS Denver stated. An audible pop is heard on the digital camera, one thing Hopp acknowledged listening to in footage later released by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility at the Loveland Police Division, where she complained a number of instances about having accidents, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly forced to sit down in a holding cell with out medical consideration for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and another staff were heard on safety footage acknowledging that she could have accidents.

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

As first reported by CBS Denver, the Larimer County District Attorney's Office elected to maneuver forward with a plea settlement in opposition to the need of the Garner household. The household felt the video in the case proved Hopp was guilty on all counts beyond an affordable doubt.