Officer Shoots Dogs, Loses Qualified Immunity..
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00:00The owner of this property saw the couple in this truck on the building's CCTV.
00:04He called the cops and requested them to investigate the couple's presence.
00:08The video picks up when Officer Matthew Grahorn arrives on the scene.
00:11He immediately shoots the couple's dog.
00:30Really? It's literally their dog.
01:00Maybe you ought to have your dogs in your truck then. Is this your property?
01:07That's why I'm here because you're trespassing.
01:12Ma'am, you're not going to be able to help them.
01:19You're not going to be able to help them. I need you to stay there.
01:22I need you to just, you can't leave, just do this. You have no idea what this dog means.
01:29Sir, I don't need you cussing and yelling at me no more.
01:32The man is not cussing nor is he yelling.
01:34He just wants to take their injured dog to the vet.
01:37Why don't you get your other dogs managed?
01:41Listen, listen, he's okay. He's going to be okay. I want to take him to a vet, please.
01:46Where did you hit him?
01:47In the head and in the side. Let me, let me.
01:52If he's still alive, let us take him to the vet, please.
01:55Let me take him, he's okay. He's going to be okay.
01:57Stay there.
01:58He's going to be okay.
01:59Wait for me to get some more help and we'll help you, okay?
02:02He's going to be okay. Please let me take him.
02:05Perky, Perky, it's okay, baby.
02:07God, I can't believe he's looking.
02:10Why did you do that?
02:11I don't know because he's running after me like he's going to bite me.
02:13He's a puppy.
02:14I don't know that.
02:15He's a puppy.
02:16Do I know that? Do I know that?
02:18Why would you do something like that? Oh my God.
02:22You should have shocked him.
02:24Okay. Yeah, thanks for telling me how to do my job. Just stay there.
02:29Perky, oh my God. Perky, no, no.
02:32I want to take you to a vet, baby. Please call me.
02:35Puppy.
02:36Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.
02:40Please let me take him to a vet, sir.
02:41We're taking him to an emergency treatment.
02:43We're not doing anything wrong.
02:44Just stay there.
02:45Please.
02:46Stay there.
02:47Can I call my friend?
02:53He's not.
02:55I'm going to, honey, please help me with him.
02:57I can't, I can't.
02:59Please, you can't do this.
03:01Stay there.
03:01It's not happening, oh my God.
03:03Please, he's a baby.
03:07Stay right there.
03:08I'm not illegal.
03:10Please let me take him to a vet.
03:13She continues begging, but the officer ignores her
03:16and proceeds to investigate the initial call.
03:18Why are you here?
03:20Because we're selling, I'm selling this wood, right?
03:24And they needed, the place needed a place for it to be locked up.
03:29And one of my other customers gave me this ice machine out of Bertha.
03:34And so we were going to spray paint it up and then take it over there
03:38and put the wood in it for them.
03:40Okay, the people that, listen.
03:43We've already went over that, have we not?
03:44Yes.
03:45Do I know your dog's friendly?
03:47When I say no, one dog stops, one keeps coming.
03:49That's what's going to happen, man.
03:51I'm not in the business to get bit.
03:53I know, I wanted you to shock him, if anything.
03:56That doesn't work like that.
03:58Man, that's a bummer.
04:00It is a terrible bummer.
04:02But the reason I'm here is the business owners watch on camera
04:04and thought you were loading stuff up.
04:06Okay, no.
04:06So that's the reason I'm here.
04:08We stopped to spray paint this really fast.
04:11But it doesn't make sense for you to come in somebody's private property business
04:14and start wrecking, opening up shop.
04:17At first I thought it was abandoned because of the front of it.
04:23God, she's going to fucking kill me.
04:26You got your driver's license?
04:27Yes, we got a vet right there on the corner.
04:29My sergeant's coming if he wants to let you take it to the vet.
04:32The officer is detaining them until the sergeant approves of
04:35letting the couple take their injured dog to the vet.
04:37Our vet is right there.
04:39If it's possible, he might live, right?
04:43Maybe.
04:44Yep.
04:44Just give me a minute.
04:45My sergeant will be here, okay?
04:46All right.
04:47Officer Matthews makes a pathetic attempt to over-exaggerate
04:50the circumstances of this incident.
04:52Man, I should have stun gunned him or some shit.
04:57Fuck.
04:58You got to listen to what you're telling me.
05:00So if a suspect comes out with a knife, I need to try to tase him before I shoot him.
05:03Did he have a knife?
05:04It's the same thing.
05:05He's a dog pit bull who's going to come to bite me.
05:07I don't take the chances.
05:08I have to do what's going to work.
05:11A stun gun.
05:12They don't always work.
05:14You have extensive experience with the stun gun?
05:15Yeah, I do.
05:16I do.
05:17They don't always work.
05:17I've been shocked the fuck out of plenty of times.
05:20Yeah, they work.
05:21They stopped me.
05:23They stopped me.
05:24I don't know.
05:24Well, you're in a big hurry to get to the vet.
05:26Now's your opportunity.
05:28The dog was taken to the vet.
05:30After four days in intensive care, he was euthanized.
05:33The cops issued Jayhama summons for unlawful ownership of a dangerous dog.
05:37The DA later dismissed the charge.
05:39The couple filed a lawsuit against Officer Matthews-Grahorn,
05:42Sergeant Philip Metzler and the City of Loveland.
05:45A year after filing the lawsuit, the couple has finally secured a bit of justice.
05:49Officer Matthews-Grahorn has been denied qualified immunity.
05:52The court came to this conclusion despite never watching the body camera footage,
05:56which the couple failed to enter into evidence.
05:58Despite this lack of evidence, the court agrees that the killing of the couple's dog
06:02was not only a seizure under the Fourth Amendment, but an unreasonable one at that.
06:06The court doesn't bother to discuss whether or not this violation of rights is clearly established.
06:11That will likely come into play during the inevitable appeal of this decision.
06:15Do you guys think qualified immunity will be overturned?
06:18In this next video, we're gonna watch the world's
06:21fastest oral argument before any circuit court ever.
06:26Robert Johnson was convicted by a jury for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
06:31He appealed and the case was brought before the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,
06:35challenging the denial of his motion to suppress the cocaine evidence
06:38that was obtained during a traffic stop where a dog alerted,
06:41arguing that he did not consent the dog to sniff around his van.
06:45Unfortunately, just five weeks prior, Supreme Court case Illinois v. Cabals
06:50made it irrelevant whether Johnson's consent for the dog sniff was voluntary or not.
06:54Johnson's lawyer was not prepared for any distinguishable argument
06:58between his case and the recent Supreme Court's case.
07:01I'll be honest with this court.
07:03I don't think that the position that we have is one that this court has honored,
07:10has found to be a very strong one.
07:12But I think that we have a problem with police taking advantage of interrogation situations,
07:20of hoping that they will find evidence, of making pretextual stops
07:25and using the situation by saying, yes, this gentleman was speeding
07:29and then ultimately finding cocaine and being happy when they make the arrest
07:33and ultimately make the conviction.
07:34Counsel, is there anything left of your argument after the Supreme Court's decision
07:38in January in the Cabals case?
07:40I understand.
07:41I mean, I'm here because I feel very strongly about this.
07:44I mean, my words are probably not being heard by very many people.
07:49But I feel necessary that some people need to listen.
07:53Any way to distinguish it?
07:56I mean, I understand you object to the premise of that.
07:59I hope you can find one.
08:00Well, what you want us to do is overrule the Supreme Court.
08:03I want you to find one to help me distinguish this, Judge.
08:06I just, I am very disturbed.
08:08Well, you can be disturbed in your own time.
08:10Why are you intruding in line?
08:12Well, because...
08:12I can't reverse the Supreme Court.
08:14Because I want you to be disturbed too.
08:16Well, if I am disturbed, it's for arguments that have nothing to do with reality.
08:20My nigga.
08:21I understand.
08:23And I don't want to argue.
08:24I want to help effect a change that is positive to this country.
08:28Is there anything in your argument that is different than your brief?
08:34Or have you expended your screen on the brief itself?
08:39The only thing I would tell you at this point that is not in here
08:43is that the government talks about how the consent is...
08:54We need to look at the issue of consent as well.
08:57There obviously is no...
09:01Consent isn't necessary in other facts in this case.
09:04Based on the dog.
09:05Based on the Supreme Court.
09:07I know. I know.
09:08Well, I have nothing else to say.
09:11May I please the court?
09:12My name is Matt Brookman.
09:13I'm an assistant U.S. attorney from...
09:15I assume you don't want us to overrule the Supreme Court.
09:17I don't.
09:18That's good.
09:18Thank you very much.
09:19I appreciate your time.
09:20Thank you very much.