The United States Department of Justice has requested the 2022 beating of Dalvin Gadson by Colorado cops to be looked into as a criminal investigation, his attorney announced on Monday.
It comes one year after several officers from the Colorado Springs Police Department pulled over Gadson, a Black veteran who was living in his car at the time, for improperly displaying his license plate last October. Body camera footage shows an officer instructing him to get out of his vehicle and said he was being detained because he was “under investigation for a DUI.”
The officers ordered him to stand up as he was sitting in the car, and after he refused, a tussle ensued. In the video, officers struck Gadson multiple times as they attempted to restrain and handcuff him. During the incident, Gadson repeatedly asked why he was being taken into custody. One video shows his bloody face as he is lying on the concrete.
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A federal lawsuit was filed against the officers, accusing them of violating Gadson’s civil rights when they used excessive force during his arrest. His attorney, Harry Daniels, previously told Atlanta Black Star that his client was “beaten, brutalized and left bloodied” at the hands of the cops. The officers talked casually and joked after the assault.
In addition to his physical injuries, Gadson’s defense team also said the incident intensified his post-traumatic stress disorder. He faced multiple charges, including driving under the influence, obstructing a peace officer, second-degree assault, resisting arrest, and driving without a license plate, but they were dismissed earlier this year.
He only ended up paying a $15 fine for the improper placement of his license plate, KUSA reported. In August, the department concluded its internal investigation, which said the three officers, Matthew Anderson, Colby Hickman, and Christopher Hummel, were justified in their actions.
On Monday, the Director of the DOJ’s Office of Civil Rights, Michael L. Alston, sent a letter to a top office in the division’s criminal section asking them to review the case following the “nature of the law enforcement misconduct allegation,” according to documents.
“One year later, Chief Vasquez still refuses to hold his officers accountable after they beat and bloodied an unarmed man over a license tag infraction,” Daniels said in a statement. “Today, we are confident that the Department of Justice will begin to correct that injustice and do what he won’t.”
