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

Nearly two years after violently arresting a 73-year-old lady with dementia, former Colorado police officer Austin Hopp was sentenced to five years in prison on Thursday as a 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 Courtroom in early March, Hopp pleaded guilty to an assault charge that was punishable by 2 to 8 years in jail. That prevented the minimum 10 to 30 or extra years in prison he would have confronted with a trial and conviction.

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

Physique digital camera footage from Hopp confirmed the officer approaching Garner as she walked home. Carrying a wildflower in her hand, she didn't adjust to multiple orders to cease. 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 near her shoulder blades, CBS Denver said. An audible pop is heard on the digital camera, something Hopp acknowledged listening to in footage later launched by Loveland police.

Garner was taken to a holding facility on the Loveland Police Department, where she complained a number of instances about having accidents, CBS Denver reported. She was allegedly forced to sit down in a holding cell without medical attention for hours, even after Hopp, Jalali and another employees were heard on safety footage acknowledging that she might have accidents.

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

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