Musician wins $200k after Colorado police dog attack

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 4 Nov, 18:58 · Archive

A Mexican musician won $200,000 in damages after Aurora police officers set a K-9 on him during a 2023 raid.

Officers from Aurora Police Department raided a home in March 2023 to execute an arrest warrant for drug charges against another resident. Salvador Alonso Guerrero Salmeron, a professional musician from Mexico, was renting a room in the house while promoting his band and performing shows. He had no connection to the suspect.

When officers entered, they shouted commands in Spanish that translated nonsensically to phrases including 'fart police, fart the wood.' Salmeron does not speak English and did not understand the commands. According to body-camera footage shown at trial, officers pointed guns at him while he held up his identification and visa documents.

Police then ordered a K-9 to attack Salmeron. The dog bit him on the arm for around 15 seconds while he held a document in his other hand. He was arrested and charged with failing to obey a police order, but prosecutors later dropped the charge.

After Salmeron filed a civil rights lawsuit against the department in October, a jury awarded him $200,000 in damages. The court found Officer Grant Peet liable for malicious prosecution and Officer Robert Wong liable for excessive force.

How it is being reported

• Jury awards $200K to Mexican tourist in ‘fart police’ translation mixup that led to excessive forceA Mexican musician said he neither heard nor understood police commands during a raid on a Colorado home in 2023Independent World · 4 Nov, 18:28
• Musician wins $200k after notorious Colorado police department's officers screamed gibberish Spanish at him while setting K-9 on himPolice raided the home of Salvador Alonso Guerrero Salmeron, a professional musician from Mexico, in 2023, sending in a K-9 unit that bit him while officers shouted nonsensical Spanish at himDaily Mail · 4 Nov, 15:16

In this story: Salvador Alonso Guerrero Salmeron · Aurora Police Department · Aurora · Colorado

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