DENVER — A Denver police officer failed to notice a loaded gun in a suspect’s waistband. The punishment for Officer Nicholas Gunsauls is a fine worth two days of pay.
The incident happened on the night of June 22, outside the Marquis Theater on Larimer Street.
Body cam footage obtained by the FOX31 Problem Solvers shows at least three Denver officers arresting a suspect accused of assault.
During the search of the male suspect, Officer Gunsauls found a collapsible baton in the suspect’s pocket. But he failed to notice a handgun in the suspect’s waist area. Body cam footage shows the butt of the gun sticking up just above the belt line.
The suspect was handcuffed and placed in a patrol car. During his ride to the Denver jail, the suspect was able to remove the gun from his waistband and left it in the backseat of the patrol car.
A different officer named Damon Roman was also fined two days because he failed to find the gun in the back of his patrol car at the end of his shift. Instead, the gun was discovered by an officer who inspected the car the following day.
In the meantime, two Denver sheriff deputies received 30-day suspensions each for unrelated infractions.
Deputy Erika Garjarski was caught on surveillance camera arguing with an inmate who was expressing suicidal thoughts.
The inmate was refusing an order to walk back to her cell from a court appearance and Garjarski allegedly referred to the inmate as a “stupid b**ch.”
At one point, video shows Garjarski opening her arms in a stance that suggested she was willing to fight the inmate who had been arguing with Garjarski. The inmate can be seen stepping towards Garjarski before other deputies quickly separated the two.
Her discipline letter notes Garjarski had a prior infraction and harassing prisoners is considered a major penalty.
In a separate case, Denver Sheriff Deputy Desiree Archuleta was suspended 30 days for shoving a fellow deputy during a dispute.
The incident was caught on a jail surveillance camera but the Department of Safety refused to release the footage. The Problem Solvers were told the video might identify the deputy who was pushed and as a result it would not be released.
