A $37,500 settlement has been reached to end a federal civil rights lawsuit brought against a Colorado Springs police officer who had a brief stint at the Columbus Police Department, the plaintiff’s attorney said.
The lawsuit, which was filed in January 2020 in U.S. District Court in Denver, alleges that Colorado Springs police officer Matthew Anderson pinned a Colorado man, identified in court filings as Michael Sexton, to the hood of his squad car, wrenched his arm and issued him a citation for jaywalking in retaliation for flipping the police officer off moments earlier.
Anderson, who was sworn in as a CPD officer in March, voluntarily disclosed the lawsuit during the hiring process but has since left the department, resigning in July to return to the Colorado Springs Police Department, said CPD spokesman Lt. Matt Harris.
Anderson rejoined the Colorado Springs Police Department as a police officer on Aug. 3, said spokesman Lt. James Sokolik.
Earlier this year, the City of Colorado Springs had attempted persuade a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that Anderson had probable cause to detain Sexton for jaywalking and that the officer was entitled to “qualified immunity,” a legal doctrine that shields public officials, including police, from lawsuits seeking monetary damages as a result of actions done in the scope of their job.
However, Judge Philip A. Brimmer of U.S. District Court in Denver allowed the lawsuit to proceed with claims against Anderson for violations of free speech, retaliation and unreasonable search and seizure, finding that Sexton had made a sufficient showing that the officer did not have probable cause to detain him because he was not jaywalking based on the language of the city’s municipal code, according to a March 31 ruling.
The lawsuit appeared as if it would be heading to trial, with a final pre-trial conference scheduled for June 2022, until this past Friday, when both parties filed to dismiss the case, with each party responsible for their own costs and fees, according to federal court filings.
“We dismissed (the lawsuit) because Anderson paid us $37,500 to settle the case,” Andy McNulty, the plaintiff’s attorney, told The Republic.
However, it is unclear if the settlement was paid out of Anderson’s personal funds or by City of Colorado Springs. Generally, local governments foot the bill for these kinds of settlements. The Colorado Springs Police Department referred questions about settlements to the city attorney’s office.
At least as of early May, the city of Colorado Springs was continuing to pay for Anderson’s defense. Brian Stewart, senior city attorney for Colorado Springs, did not respond to phone calls or emails seeking clarification.
CPD said Anderson voluntarily disclosed the lawsuit during the hiring process, but felt “comfortable” hiring him after reviewing the case and doing an “extra-thorough” background check.
CPD detectives spoke with Anderson’s supervisors and the internal affairs unit at the Colorado Springs Police Department about the incident and reviewed his complete police record, which Harris described as “exemplary.”
In a previous interview, Harris described CPD’s background checks during the hiring process as “extremely detailed,” especially for applicants who already have law enforcement experience. The hiring process is managed by detectives and also includes polygraph tests and speaking with previous employers and, sometimes, with people who know the applicant but aren’t listed as references, including ex-girlfriends or ex-boyfriends.
Harris said Anderson received 15 awards and commendations during his tenure as a Colorado Springs police officer, including a medal of valor award for his actions during a 2015 mass shooting at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic in which three people died, including a Colorado Springs police officer, and eight other were injured.
The lawsuit came from an incident that took place June 7, 2019, when Sexton raised his middle finger and flipped off Anderson as the officer drove past him in Colorado Springs.
According to the lawsuit, Anderson allegedly made a U-turn across four lanes of traffic after seeing Sexton’s gesture and asked him if he needed help. When Sexton told the officer that he didn’t, Anderson started to drive away but then allegedly performed another U-turn after observing Sexton cross the street where there was no crosswalk.
Sexton then flipped off Anderson again and started to film the officer on his cellphone.
“Defendant Anderson jumped out of his vehicle and grabbed Mr. Sexton,” the lawsuit states. “Defendant Anderson used force against Mr. Sexton within seconds of the initiation of the interaction. Defendant Anderson pulled Mr. Sexton to the police car by his wrist and shoved Mr. Sexton against, and over, the hood of his vehicle.”
The lawsuit claims that Sexton was handcuffed “for nearly 30 minutes” and issued a ticket for jaywalking after he “expressed his First Amendment-protected speech by flipping off the car.”
More specifically, Sexton was cited for violating a section of the Colorado Springs Municipal Code that requires pedestrians to cross a street at a marked crosswalk if they are “between adjacent intersections at which traffic control signals are in operation,” according to the judge’s ruling.
However, one of the intersections next to where Sexton crossed the street was not controlled by a traffic light or marked with a crosswalk, meaning that detaining Sexton “was not supported by probable cause” because he “could not have violated the municipal code,” according to the judge’s ruling.
“A simple glance at the intersection of 30th Street and Pikes Peak Avenue would have revealed that there was no traffic signal,” Brimmer ruled. “Any mistake that this intersection had a traffic signal cannot be considered reasonable.”
Video of the incident posted on Sexton’s YouTube channel the day after the incident shows an officer who later identifies himself as Anderson exiting his police vehicle and approaching Sexton, saying, “You just jaywalked” before covering Sexton’s camera with his hand.
The camera then falls to the ground. Off screen, Anderson is heard telling Sexton to turn around and not to move as Sexton protests and asks the officer to calm down. Anderson then tells Sexton why he was being issued a citation for jaywalking.
At one point, Anderson asks Sexton, “Why were you making obscene gestures the whole time? That’s weird, too, right?”
After Sexton replied, claiming that he had a “First Amendment right” to do so, Anderson said, “Yeah, but you also just can’t jaywalk, buddy. So you’re going to get a ticket, alright?”
At another point in the video, Sexton is heard attempting to draw attention to another individual he claims had just crossed the street at a similar spot that he had. Anderson appears to acknowledge this to Sexton, but says, “well, sir, since you pay our bills and stuff, we want to give you our full attention,” likely in reference to comments Sexton made earlier in the video that he was a “tax-paying citizen and I pay your guys’ salary.”
In criminal court, the jaywalking charge against Sexton was dismissed three months later.
Colorado Springs is about a 70-mile drive south of Denver and is the second largest city in Colorado, with a population of 478,961, according to the 2020 U.S. Census.
Earlier this year, the Colorado Springs Police Department had 727 uniformed officers, Sokolik said.
