PHOENIX — Phoenix police released edited surveillance and body camera video on Thursday of the moments leading up to an incident that resulted in two officers being placed on administrative leave by the department last month.
Witness video captured the two officers on October 27 with their guns drawn, head-stomping and hitting 38-year-old Harry Denman with their guns while he was on the ground as they attempted to handcuff him after he allegedly fired at their patrol car. The officer’s actions were criticized as excessive force.
The newly released video showed what the department said happened minutes before that witness began recording.
The video showed the two officers on surveillance camera walking out of a QuickTrip near 59th Avenue and Buckeye Road. Once outside, another camera showed Denman approach the officers and talk to them as they made their way to their cruiser.
The surveillance camera doesn’t have audio, but the department said the officers told Denman they couldn’t walk because they were leaving to respond to a service call.
As the patrol car starts to back out of the parking space, Denman is seen pulling out a handgun. As he is doing so, a shot goes off into the ground. A flash can be seen in the video released by police.
Denman then points the handgun at the officers inside the patrol car and fires one more shot. The department said that one bullet struck the patrol car’s spotlight and went into the driver’s side A-pillar.
Documents obtained by 12News claim a witness told investigators Denman fired the shots to try and get the officers’ attention for help.
The video showed Denman running into the occupied store, still holding the firearm. He walks behind the counter. Officers are then seen rushing into the store with their weapons drawn and order Denman to get on the ground.
Surveillance video from inside the store showed Denman with his hands up, not holding any firearm. He then is seen getting on his knees, still with his hands in the air.
The department said the officers then took Denman into custody.
What the body camera video shows
After Denman fired at the officers and ran inside the store, they followed him inside. The second officer that enters the store immediately turned on his body-worn camera.
His video showed the suspect on his knees with his hands up as officers approach him with their guns drawn.
This video has audio. The following is heard:
Note: Officer 1 is holding the long gun. Officer 2 is holding the handgun.
OFFICER 1: “Don’t [expletive] move”
SUSPECT: “I won’t move, I won’t move”
OFFICER 1: “Get on the [expletive] ground”
OFFICER 2: “Get on the ground”
The suspect complies and can be seen getting on the ground within seconds.
OFFICER 1: Kicks suspect with left foot “Get on the [expletive] ground. Don’t [expletive] move”
OFFICER 1: Puts left leg on suspect’s back “where’s the gun at?”
OFFICER 2: “Let me see your [expletive] hands” as he is reaching for the suspect’s left hand
OFFICER 1: hits suspect in the back below his neck with a gun “where’s the [expletive] gun?”
OFFICER 2: hit’s suspect in the back of his head with a handgun
The officers are seen handcuffing Denman.
OFFICER 2: “What the [expletive] is your problem?”
The video released on Thursday by the department then cuts to the body camera from the second officer, who is pointing his long gun at Denman’s back and is heard saying, “I’m gonna blow you’re [expletive] head off.”
The officer then sees the gun on the counter and asks an employee, “is that where he left it? Or did you guys put it there?” to which the employee responds, “No, he came in. I didn’t know what he was talking about.”
Denman and the officer are then heard talking:
SUSPECT: “I don’t want no problem with you guys”
OFFICER 1: “[Expletive] you dude, don’t [expletive] shoot at us”
SUSPECT: “Sorry, I was trying to shoot over you”
OFFICER 1: “No, what the [expletive] is that dude?”
Use of excessive force?
Harry Denman was arrested and booked on several charges, including aggravated assault, criminal damage, and resisting arrest.
In the arrest report, officers said they “had to use physical force in response to [Denman’s] resistance and the possibility that he was still armed.”
But a grand jury indicted him only on two counts of aggravated assault and two counts of discharging a firearm.
Following the incident, interim police Chief Michael Sullivan said, "what is depicted in the video is not how we train and is not aligned with the core values of the Phoenix Police Department.”
In a statement, the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association President Darrell Kriplean said the video released by Phoenix police "provides important context about the dangerous crime committed by the suspect."
"This is not an easy job, especially when police officers are the target," the statement read. "We are grateful to the men and women of the Phoenix Police Department who continued to respond to increased crime within the city with fewer resources during a time when attacks on officers are on the rise."
The department is in the middle of conducting an internal and criminal investigation into the officer’s actions. The department said one of them has been a Phoenix officer for six years and the other for less than one year.
Denman has a criminal history. 12News obtained documents that reveal in 2007, he used a fake $50 bill at Fiesta Mall. When an off-duty security officer tried to stop him, Denman pulled out a gun and pointed it at the officer. He plead guilty to two charges of aggravated assault.
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