Denver officer sued by 4 bystanders struck by his bullets
DENVER (KDVR) — Four people injured when Denver police officers shot a suspect in a crowded area of LoDo last year are now suing one of the officers.
According to the lawsuit, Bailey Alexander, Yekalo Weldehiwet, Willis Small IV and Mark Bess, all bystanders, were injured when Officer Brandon Ramos fired two bullets meant for a suspect he saw holding a gun, 22-year-old Jordan Waddy.
Six people were injured in the shooting, including the four bystanders who filed this lawsuit in Denver District Court.
“This officer fired into a crowd of more than 100 people and shot [six] of us. We were all struck with a bullet from Officer Ramos’ gun, and it is by the grace of God that we all survived,” Alexander said.
Shots fired in crowded LoDo
On July 17, 2022, at 1:30 a.m., three Denver Police Department officers fired multiple shots into a crowded area at 20th and Larimer streets in Denver’s Lower Downtown neighborhood.
According to police, Waddy was part of a fight in the area, and when police approached he made a motion leading officers to suspect he had a gun.
According to the Denver District Attorney’s Office, officers Kenneth Rowland and Meghan Lieberson were directly in front of Waddy when they discharged their firearms. The third officer, Ramos, was standing on the sidewalk and could only see Waddy from the side when he fired two shots in Waddy’s direction.
According to the lawsuit, Ramos fired his gun twice in the general area where Waddy was on Larimer Street after hearing his fellow officers discharge their weapons. The lawsuit alleges that none of Ramos’ shots struck Waddy and instead hit multiple pedestrians.
Ramos was previously indicted by a grand jury on multiple charges, including assault and negligence with a deadly weapon. The DA’s office said Ramos disregarded the risk toward the crowd.
Waddy faces counts of third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, and three felony counts of possession of a weapon by a previous offender. He’s due back in court on May 5.
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