Colorado Man Alleges Permanent Vision Damage After Police Pepper Spray Incident

A Colorado man claims that his vision has been permanently impaired following an encounter with the police, during which he was reportedly pepper-sprayed after refusing to accept a summons for petty trespassing. The incident occurred in Old Town Fort Collins in August 2021, and the victim, Andru Kulas, has since filed a lawsuit against the city of Fort Collins and its police department.

Kulas’ lawsuit, filed in August, targets Fort Collins and two police officers, Kevin Park and Avery Hanzlicek, who arrested him almost two years ago on charges of trespassing on the rooftop of an Old Town bar. The lawsuit alleges that Park used excessive force when pepper-spraying Kulas, and Hanzlicek failed in his duty to intervene against this excessive use of force.

The incident came to light after Kulas’ attorneys released both edited and unedited body camera footage from the incident, as well as the internal investigation report conducted by Fort Collins Police Services following Kulas’ complaint. Fort Collins Police Chief Jeff Swoboda issued a statement in response to the lawsuit, which included additional body camera footage.

Here are the key details about the incident, as revealed in the lawsuit, internal investigation report, and body camera footage:

• On August 29, 2021, Officer Hanzlicek responded to a reported trespassing incident at a bar where two individuals were spotted climbing onto the rooftop. He identified Kulas and his friend as potential suspects and began speaking with them. Kulas cooperated by providing his identification when requested.

• Hanzlicek was in the process of issuing Kulas a summons for third-degree trespassing, a petty offense, when Officer Park arrived as backup. At this point, Kulas was standing nearby, asking questions. Park, unaware of Kulas’s involvement, ignored his questions and instructed him to step back.

• Kulas refused to accept the summons when it was handed to him, prompting Park to insist that he take it to avoid the issuance of a warrant. When Kulas continued to resist, Park forcefully attempted to make him take the summons, leading to a physical altercation.

• According to the internal investigation report, Park aggressively pushed the citation into Kulas’ chest, grabbed his jacket, and forced him to the ground without provocation. The report noted that Kulas’s attempt to push or brush Park’s hand away was incidental and not an attempt to assault the officer.

• Park subsequently deployed pepper spray at close range into Kulas’s face while he was restrained on the ground. Kulas asked for assistance to wash his eyes, but the officers allegedly ignored his pleas.

Kulas received treatment from emergency medical professionals on the scene and was later taken to jail, where he remained for 36 hours. During his detention, he reportedly experienced intense discomfort, blindness, swelling, and burning sensations. The lawsuit claims that Kulas continues to suffer from cloudy vision two years later.

In addition to the trespassing allegation, Kulas faced charges of obstructing a peace officer and resisting arrest. The 8th Judicial District Attorney’s Office dismissed the obstructing and resisting charges, considering them “unsupported.” The third-degree trespassing charge was also dropped after Kulas completed a class.

Despite an internal investigation finding that Officer Park violated department policy, Police Chief Swoboda exonerated him. The department’s policy emphasizes using nonviolent means to gain compliance before resorting to force, and the internal affairs investigation suggested that Park could have found alternative means to issue the summons. However, the Citizen Review Board, consisting of residents responsible for independently reviewing internal investigations, sided with Swoboda’s exoneration decision during a March 2022 meeting.

In response to the lawsuit, Swoboda revealed that the city had received a letter requesting $750,000 in “quiet compensation,” which would have kept the case out of the public eye. The city declined the request, emphasizing the importance of transparency in such cases.

This incident comes in the context of increased scrutiny nationwide regarding excessive use of force by law enforcement agencies. Several major cities have faced allegations of discriminatory policing practices and excessive force, with investigations ongoing into multiple law enforcement agencies.