County Commissioners approve $80,000 excessive force settlement
The El Paso County Commissioners approved an $80,000 settlement with a former inmate on Tuesday concerning an incident of excessive force.
The incident occurred in September 2007 when Brock John Behler received a broken arm in a scuffle with former El Paso County sheriff’s deputy Dennis Grivois in a work release facility at the criminal justice center, said Dave Rose county public information officer.
“I assume (the deputy) was trying to achieve compliance to some sort of rule and wasn’t getting it,” Rose said.
Behler was in jail for resisting arrest, said El Paso County Commissioner Dennis Hisey.
“Apparently the boy had some trouble with authority,” he said.
Behler filed the lawsuit in September 2009. He is now out of jail and no longer lives in Colorado.
Rose said that the decision to settle took into account what would be a fair and reasonable solution as well as the cost of litigation.
Grivois is no longer working for the county, Rose said.
Vail Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn threw out the ceremonial first pitch last month at a game between the Colorado Rockies and Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Vonn is a spokeswoman for the “America Supports Team USA” program, a U.S. Olympic Committee fundraiser that started on Memorial Day and runs through July 31. Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS