Denver to pay $500,000 to settle police, sheriff's excessive force cases

The Denver City Council is set to approve a combined $500,000 payment Monday to settle two lawsuits accusing police officers and sheriff's deputies of violent conduct.

The larger of the two settlements – $400,000 – stems from a lawsuit filed last spring on behalf of Scott Peters.

Denver police officers and paramedics encountered Peters on the afternoon of April 25, 2021, in a parking lot near Empower Field at Mile High. Officers found a bag of what they thought was cocaine in his car and paramedics injected Peters with sedatives without his permission, according to his lawsuit, first filed in March 2023.

After a stay at Denver Health, Peters was transported to the downtown jail. While attempting to move him from a wheelchair to a cell, deputies became unnecessarily aggressive, Peters' attorneys say.

Deputies pulled Peters from his chair and “roughed him up” inside the cell for nearly five minutes, according to the lawsuit, which contradicts the department's official accounts of the incident.

A deputy, identified in the complaint as Daniel Rodriguez, used a pair of nunchucks to control Peters' right arm, according to the lawsuit — and ultimately applied enough force to break his wrist and sever two arteries. The injury required emergency surgery and left Peters with permanent damage, the suit says.

Rodriguez was suspended last year for three days for using excessive force against Peters. The incident prompted the Denver Sheriff's Department to ban the use of specialized nunchucks for law enforcement.

The second settlement stems from accusations that three Denver police officers entered Lidya Ryans' home in the early morning hours of April 20, 2021, without a warrant and violently arrested her without cause.

Denver is set to pay $100,000 to settle the case.