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Aurora man stunned with gun, lawyer says it was unjustified

Charges dropped against man stunned by police
Posted at 7:29 PM, Sep 09, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-10 00:52:55-04

AURORA, Colo. -- Darsean Kelley was originally charged by Aurora police with failure to obey a lawful order. But the charges were dropped after the ACLU was able to prove the Kelley’s rights were violated.

In the video, Kelley asks the officers repeatedly why he is being stopped when all of a sudden he is stunned with a Taser. 

Police tell Denver7 earlier that night, they received a call of black male pointing a gun at a 6-year-old girl. While they were responding, they spotted two males arguing, one of them was Kelley.

The officers first told Kelley to sit but he wouldn’t due to a groin injury. The officers asked him to put his hand behind his head, but instead he placed his hands in the air. One of the officers then used a Taser him.

The department’s force review board that viewed the incident ruled the officer didn't violate the excessive use of force policy. The charges against Kelley were dropped before his hearing.

"We argued that the stop wasn't based on probable cause and wasn't based on reasonable suspicion and therefore a violation of the Fourth Amendment,” said ACLU lawyer Mark Silverstein.

The Aurora Chief of Police wants to take a closer look and has asked for the independent review board to look at the incident. The board is made up of officers and Aurora residents. Kelley wasn't willing to give a comment. 

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