$2.5 Million Verdict in Police Shooting Case Litigated Pretrial by David Maxted

A Denver jury awarded a $2.5 million verdict for plaintiff Michael Valdez arising from the violation of his civil rights when he was shot by Denver police officers in 2013 while on the ground with his hands raised in surrender. The case was tried by Jeff Pagliuca and Laura Menninger of Haddon, Morgan and Foreman, P.C.

While at HMF, Denver civil rights attorney David Maxted led discovery in the case, including multiple depositions, led a successful opposition to summary judgment, and handled successful briefing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Defendant Robert Motyka had claimed qualified immunity and sought appeal, but the Court rejected that claim and agreed with plaintiff’s brief that the case presented issues of fact for a jury to decide. Maxted also filed a motion to declare Motyka’s appeal frivolous, which was granted by federal District Court Judge William Martinez, allowing the case to proceed to trial. A jury ultimately agreed Mr. Valdez’s civil rights were violated when he was shot on the ground with his hands up, awarding him significant damages.

As reported by the Denver Post, the jury verdict reflected a conclusion that Denver had failed to properly train Motyka and was therefore responsible for his use of excessive force in needlessly shooting Valdez. Denver had even given Motyka a special award for the conduct a jury concluded violated the Constitution. Motyka had also previously been found liable in a case where a jury awarded $1.8 million due to the unlawful prosecution and warrantless raid of an innocent family’s residence, including punitive damages.

The federal lawsuit is Valdez v. Motyka, 15-cv-109 and the Tenth Circuit opinion in plaintiff’s favor can be found here.