Denver Police are sticking by their man.
Officer Shawn Miller of the Denver Police Department is costing the city
in more ways than one:
Over nine years, one officer of the Denver Police Department has accumulated 40 complaints but was never punished for more than two days. Now, the city is considering an $860,000 settlement for complaint No. 12 -- a case in which the officer was never disciplined at all.
Denver has already settled another case involving the same officer for $225,000 in 2011.
Attorneys and a judge approved the most recent settlement of $860,000 and it now heads to the city council for final approval. These weren't the first complaints reviewed:
Ten times between 2007 and 2010, Miller's behavior resulted in an automatic performance review. In 2009, he was reviewed for three or more use of force complaints received in a period of three months. The same pattern triggered a review in 2010.
And yet, he is still on the force, albeit riding a desk for the time-being. The strongest action taken against him was two days without pay. Denver Police say they are changing how complaints are handled, but it is too little, too late for the 40 known people who have complained about Officer Miller:
Under the leadership of Police Chief Robert White, the department says it has changed the way it responds to performance reviews. Where Miller's behavior triggered reviews but never led to corrective action, DPD now says all officers who trigger a review will be assigned to work on fixing the issue.
One of Officer Miller's victims is James Moore, a disabled veteran who was beaten so severely that
his heart stopped:
"(The officers) beat Mr. Moore with such brutality while he was helpless on the ground that he lost consciousness, his heart stopped beating and paramedics or law enforcement officers had to administer CPR to save his life," the suit says.
After Moore was resuscitated, the officers charged Moore with two felony assault counts. The Denver district attorney's office later dismissed the charges.
So, just what does it take to get a cop fired in Denver? $5 million in settlements? $10 million?