OKLAHOMA CITY — An OKCPD Internal Affairs investigation found numerous procedural flaws in a sergeant’s response to a noise complaint resulting in a resident’s injuries.
Court documents show that Oklahoma County DA Vicki Behenna responded by bringing one count of the charge of Misdemeanor Assault and Battery against Oklahoma City Police Department Sgt. Rasaun Gordon for that on-duty encounter he had with residents on September 15 around 3:30 AM.
The DA’s charging document states that Gordon “did commit the crime of Assault and Battery upon the person of one Llulisa Carranza by pushing Llulisa Carranza to the ground causing her to hit her head.”
The document then states that when Carranza stood back up the officer “unlawfully placed her in custody” causing injury to her arm “with the unlawful intent to do corporal hurt….”
The actions of the officer are troubling to the department, said MSgt. Gary Knight. “As a police department, we hate to see one of our guys do something that’s going to give the department a black eye.”
Response to a complaint
According to an affidavit of probable cause by the OKCPD Office of Professional Standards (Internal Affairs), Gordon violated several procedural standards in his response to the noise complaint.
The body cam video released by the OKCPD (see below) shows that Gordon was the first to use an expletive and within one minute of his walking up to a group of people who were in a driveway drinking and playing music over a speaker next to a vehicle.
The video and the affidavit show that Gordon said, “…take the speaker and go inside. Now! Fucking move!”
Ongoing argument
It was at that point that Carranza and Gordon descended into an ongoing argument.
Carranza responded to Gordon’s language saying that Gordon should not be speaking to them like that. The argument continued for several minutes with Gordon telling them that they should go inside with the speaker.
The group slowly started moving into the garage as Gordon and Carranza continued to argue.
The affidavit says that “There were numerous opportunities for the Defendant [Gordon] to disengage and leave the residence once they complied.”
“The Defendant re-engaged the argument with Carranza numerous times,” continues the affidavit.
A shove, arrest, injury
When Carranza stepped back out of the garage about one foot, Gordon became irritated at Carranza for being argumentative.
It was at that point that Gordan “forcefully shoved Carranza back into the garage of the home while telling her to “get in-fucking-side now!” according to the affidavit.
The document states that Carranza was sent “five to seven” feet back into the garage landing on the floor and “struck an object in the garage.”
“Carranza was not acting in a manner consistent with being a threat to the Defendant [Gordon] or anyone else around,” states the affidavit. “The Defendant’s actions were not consistent with being a threat to the Defendant or anyone else around. The shove exceeded any reasonable force authorized in this incident.”
The affidavit goes on to describe the arrest of Carranza and the twisting of her arm in the process of putting cuffs on her. He told her she was being arrested for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct.
However, the investigation found that Gordon tried to release her at the scene and “denied her eight separate requests to speak to a supervisor.”
The report shows that instead of taking Carranza for booking at the Oklahoma County Detention Center he took her to the Public Inebriation Alternative where a portable breath test result was 0.046.
The OKCPD released the officer’s bodycam video of the incident:
Medical treatment for injuries
The affidavit reports that Carranza sought medical treatment after she was released and “was diagnosed with a bone contusion and swelling on the elbow. Additionally, she sustained a contusion on her head with a knot that was present for over 10 days.”
“Carranza was unable to utilize her left arm for daily tasks as a result of the injury for more than 10 days,” the report continues. “Carranza still maintains a more limited range of motion in the elbow and requires physical therapy.”
Police Department comments
Free Press talked with MSgt. Gary Knight with the OKCPD about the effect on other officers when an officer goes far off of their training.
“As a police department, we hate to see one of our guys do something that’s going to give the department a black eye,” said Knight.
“Sadly, people tend to stereotype police officers, and if one does something that the public deems as excessive or over the top, people tend to view the entire police department that way,” said Knight. “They view us as a whole, and they assume that if one officer is doing it, then the entire department is doing it.”
Free Press asked the DA’s office for comment on the incident and charges in an email. Their response was that they did not plan to issue any statement.
Founder, publisher, and editor of Oklahoma City Free Press. Brett continues to contribute reports and photography to this site as he runs the business.
