UPDATE: Mar 8, 2017
Former Owasso police officer, Mike Denton, found not guilty.
OWASSO, Okla. — Wednesday, a former Owasso Police officer was found not guilty after being accused of excessive force.
Michael Denton was acquitted Wednesday. Dashcam video shows Denton hitting a suspect with a shotgun during an arrest.
Denton was found not guilty of assault and battery with a deadly weapon and reckless conduct with a firearm.
Following the verdict, the Owasso Police Department posted the following message in its Facebook page:
“Today, March 8th, 2017, former Owasso Police Officer Mike Denton was acquitted by a jury in Nowata County on the charges of Reckless Conduct with a Firearm and Assault and Battery with a Deadly Weapon. As Chief of Police of the Owasso Police Department, I affirm my respect for the rule of law and judicial process. The burden of proof in a criminal trial is the highest of any judicial process, as it should be. The outcome of the trial in no way diminishes my belief that the decisions made by Mr. Denton are inconsistent with Owasso Police Department policies and the department’s core values.”
2015/06/20
OWASSO — Officer Mike Denton has been confirmed to have beat a citizen with a shotgun over and over again after new footage was released from a dashcam.
He has been placed on paid suspension.
The Police Chief said — amazingly yet not surprisingly — “We were within our policies and guidelines in this pursuit.”
He then added, “As you know, there’s other things under investigation but I’m not at liberty to comment on that because it’s under investigation.”
The “other things” that this police chief is alluding to would be the footage of the compliant man being beaten severely with the barrel-end and the butt of a shotgun.
This was already after the citizen had been tased.
Watch the video below:
