Posts tagged Boulder Police
Boulder police: Officer’s Shameful Mapleton Neighborhood Pet Elk Shooting – Executive Summary
Mar 27th
FULL REPORT SEE HERE:
Some names have been redacted to protect department members’ personnel privacy rights. Investigative
reports on personnel matters are typically not made public. The decision to release this report
was made in the interest of transparency (to the degree possible) and due to the already public
nature of the incident, the degree of public concern expressed over the incident, and the fact that both officers are no longer with the departmentOn January 1, 2013, at approximately 2255 hours, Officer Sam Carter shot and killed an elk with
police issued shotgun on the corner of 9th and Mapleton while on duty. Officer Carter had
made prior arrangements with off duty Officer Brent Curnow to assist him in loading the elk in
Curnow’s truck for later processing. Officer Carter made no attempt to report that he had
discharged his shotgun or that he had killed the elk. (Officers sometimes have to euthanize
injured animals to prevent further suffering.) Officer Carter did not notify a supervisor, dispatch,
or file any reports about the incident.
On the morning of January 2nd, the department began to receive media inquiries about the killing
of the elk. The department had no knowledge of any officer involvement in the killing at that
time. The department continued to follow-up on reports that an elk had been killed by a Boulder
officer and learned on the evening of January 2nd that Sam Carter had killed the elk. The
department then began a preliminary internal investigation to determine the circumstances and
why Carter did not report the shooting to anyone. As information was developed, it became
obvious that there were serious questions around the circumstances of the shooting and the
actions of the officers involved.
On January 3rd, a formal Internal Affairs Investigation (IA) was initiated against Officers Carter
and Curnow (see attached complaints officially filed January 4th). Both officers were placed on
administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. At about the same time, a
criminal investigation was initiated by the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife (CPW).
While information was shared with CPW, the investigations remained separate and distinct. The
goal of the department’s IA investigation was to determine whether Officers Carter and Curnow
had violated any department rules and/or policies. The criminal investigation was left to CPW
and eventually forwarded to the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office. We did not conduct
a personnel investigation into the actions of Deputy Jeff George. That responsibility fell to his
employer, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.
On January 18th Officers Carter and Curnow were arrested and charged with multiple offenses
related to the elk shooting. On the same date, both officers were placed on leave without pay and
given appointments to report to the police department for their formal IA interviews on January BOULDER POLICE DEPARTMENT
Report 2/37
21st. Rather than appear for their interviews as scheduled, their attorney Marc Colin appeared
and announced that both officers would resign effective January 22nd. Boulder Police continued to investigate to determine the facts and whether other employees were potentially involved. The department did not find any other violations of rules or policies by any other employees. Some employees had overheard statements by Carter and or Curnow about
wanting to get the elk, or shoot the elk. However, the context in which these statements were
made did not lead those employees to believe either officer would illegally or without
justification shoot the elk. Both officers were hunters, as were other members of the department,
and would often talk about hunting, so this type of conversation did not seem alarming. Often,
job related joking occurs at briefings to start the day, so it is not unusual to hear officers make
statements in jest. As one officer put it, Carter was always making brash statements in briefing
but never did any of the things he joked about. No one took him literally when he said he
wanted to kill the elk. Officer Curnow also reportedly teased a Sergeant about putting the elk
down as he knew that Sergeant was an animal lover.
The elk in question had been around Boulder for many months and was admired by many
officers. Some officers even took pictures of the elk due to its size and beauty. After the
shooting, the officers who worked with Carter and Curnow were shocked, disappointed, and
angry that they would do such a thing.
All of the information gathered during the investigation was provided to supervisors and the
department’s 12 member IA Review Panel, (six community members and six department
members). All reviewers were unanimous in recommending the allegations against Carter and
Curnow be sustained. Chief of Police Mark Beckner agreed with these recommendations and
entered a sustained finding in the personnel files of both Carter and Curnow.
None of the reviewers or panel members believed any disciplinary action was appropriate for any
other officer. The Chief of Police also asked specifically for feedback from supervisors and the
IA Review Panel in regards to some decision making on the part of two other officers. One
involved a post on a Facebook page about the elk and the other involved being more timely in
letting the department know of Carter’s involvement. The consensus feedback was that both
situations were best handled as learning experiences to be addressed through documented
counseling with supervisors. The Chief accepted this recommendation.
Assault suspect from 2012 bar fight still wanted by police
Mar 1st
The male victim was in the restroom when the male suspect tried to enter the stall. The two men pushed each other and at one point, the suspect attacked the victim with a beer bottle. The victim was taken to the hospital to be treated for his injuries which included a concussion, cuts to his head and face and wounds on his chest and arms from the beer bottle.
The suspect fled the bar, and the victim believes a friend of the suspect tried to detain the victim as the suspect got away. The suspect was seen running westbound across 13th St. and through a parking lot. Police were unable to locate him.
At the time of the assault, the Boulder Police Department released a composite sketch and a description of the suspect. The suspect has not yet been identified and police are publicizing the information again, hoping that a member of the public may recognize the suspect and contact police.
The sketch is attached. The suspect is described as:
· White male
· 21 – 29 years old
· 6’0 – 6’3” tall, weighing 180 – 200 pounds
· Build was described as “not toned”
· Short blonde hair which may have been bleached or highlighted
· Witnesses described him as a “surfer type”
· At the time of the assault, was wearing a light-colored shirt or white shirt with blue pinstripes
· May have been bleeding from his mouth, and may have had a cut over his left eye
The case number is 12-2846.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Tom Dowd at 303-441-3385. Those who have information but wish to remain anonymous may contact the Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or 1-800-444-3776. Tips can also be submitted through the Crime Stoppers website at www.crimeshurt.com. Those submitting tips through Crime Stoppers that lead to the arrest and filing of charges on a suspect(s) may be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000 from Crime Stoppers.
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— CITY–
Boulder Chief of Police: Department supports charges against officers who killed elk; apologizes to community
Jan 18th
As you know, Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett has announced that his office will file charges against the two Boulder Police officers involved in the shooting death of the Mapleton elk on January 1st. The officers face three felony charges in addition to a number of misdemeanor charges.
The Boulder Police Department fully supports the decision of the district attorney to pursue charges in this case. It’s the right decision, and the Department has assisted and cooperated fully with the Colorado Division of Parks & Wildlife and the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office.
Officers Sam Carter and Brent Curnow have been on paid administrative leave since January 3rd, while the case has been investigated, as dictated by department policy and contractual due process.
Effective immediately, I have placed Sam Carter and Brent Curnow on unpaid administrative leave.
We realize that this case has hit a sensitive nerve in the Boulder community, and I want to reassure our community that I understand their concerns and that I intend to hold these officers accountable for their actions.
While the criminal investigation has (mostly) wrapped up, there is still an internal personnel investigation underway at the Boulder Police Department. This investigation is different and separate from the criminal investigation, and has to do with whether these officers may have violated rules, policies or procedures. We needed to proceed cautiously with the internal investigation because we didn’t want to interfere with the criminal investigation. The Boulder Police Department provided some of the evidence for the criminal case and cooperated fully with investigators.
We hope to move quickly now to complete our internal personnel investigation. Once that is finished, there is a review process that includes a combined community and department member review panel which will provide recommendations to me on the final disposition. If the allegations are sustained, the discipline for such allegations – including being untruthful – would typically be termination from employment.
We apologize for this unfortunate incident. We want our community to know that we take their concerns very seriously and that we’re working hard to correct this situation.
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