On Jan. 5, a jury found that an Amarillo police officer didn’t use excessive force in his arrest of the plaintiff. In 2007, Davin Fassauer was arrested by officer Christopher Shelton. Fassauer claimed the officer jumped on Fassauer’s head. After Fassauer stood up, Shelton allegedly told Fassauer he was lucky he wasn’t killed and informed another officer to shoot Fassauer. Fassauer also claimed that Shelton and other officers laughed at him as he bled from his ear. Shelton denied jumping on the plaintiff’s head. He claimed that the force was reasonable and any injuries were due to Fassauer’s own negligence. The defense police-procedures expert testified that the use of force was appropriate and the tactics were textbook.
Fassauer v. Shelton, No. 2:09-cv-00175-J
