DOJ Opens Investigation Into Beating Of Homeless Black Veteran By Colorado Police One Year Later

The United States Department of Justice will launch a criminal investigation into the beating of Dalvin Gadson, a year after the brutal encounter between the man and Colorado Springs police officers, Atlanta Black Star reports.

Gadson’s attorney, Harry Daniels, announced the DOJ’s plans on Monday, Oct. 9. “One year later, Chief Vasquez still refuses to hold his officers accountable after they beat and bloodied an unarmed man over a license tag infraction,” Daniels said.

“Today, we are confident that the Department of Justice will begin to correct that injustice and do what he won’t.”

The Director of the DOJ’s Office of Civil Rights, Michael L. Alston, has asked the department to review the case, considering the “nature of the law enforcement misconduct allegation,” according to reports.

Gadson, a Black veteran, was unhoused at the time of his arrest and subsequent assault in October 2022. According to reports, body cam footage from those involved in the encounter showed officers descending upon Gadson’s vehicle for “improperly displaying his license,“ a penalty for which the man would later pay a $15 fee—before ordering him to get out of the car and allegedly violently attacking him repeatedly.

In the video, Gadson’s bloody face is pressed against the concrete while his arms are restrained behind his back. He would later be charged with a litany of offenses, including driving under the influence, obstructing a peace officer, second-degree assault, resisting arrest, and driving without a license plate, all dismissed in 2023.

A federal investigation into the attack was launched last year, citing excessive force and noting that several officers laughed and joked about the brutal beating. An internal investigation by the Colorado Springs Police Department concluded that the three officers allegedly involved in the incident—Matthew Anderson, Colby Hickman, and Christopher Hummel—displayed reasonable actions at the time of Gadson’s arrest.