Skip to Content

Jury awards Salem man $3M for wrongful arrest, excessive force by police officer

By Paulina Aguilar

Click here for updates on this story

    SALEM Oregon (KPTV) — A Salem man was awarded more than $3 million in damages Thursday after a jury decided he was wrongly accused of auto theft by a Salem Police Officer who jurors said used excessive force during the arrest.

Surveillance video shows Officer David Baker pulling into a parking lot on the night of Sept. 17, 2021. Court documents say Chris Garza was working on a car with two other people at OK Tire of Salem.

“The first thing he asked me was if I was stealing the car, I felt that I was being racially profiled, I was called a thief,” Garza said.

Documents say Baker grabbed Garza by the neck and shoulder and shoved him onto the hood of the police car, injuring his neck, shoulders, hand and wrist.

“There’s a big bruise on it from still, the fact that he just threw me in front of the police car, punched me in the back of the head, at least once.”

Documents also say Baker then handcuffed Garza tightly and roughly placed him in the back of the police car. That’s when Garza said Baker pulled his arm to his neck area and hyperextended it.

“What was going through my mind was, ‘am I going to be alive here, the next 10 minutes?’ I was fearful for my life.”

Baker then discovered Garza’s address was the same as the auto shop and he was released with no charges.

Days later, Garza filed a complaint. Court documents say the detention and use of excessive force were intentional and done without probable cause. Kafoury and McDougal Law Firm say the city initially offered $12,000 to settle the case.

“I felt that Salem Police Department wasn’t being responsible,” Garza said. “They weren’t being upfront and taking responsibility for their officer. I felt like they were just essentially disrespecting me and my injury.”

Two years later, the case was settled. The jury ordered the city of Salem to pay $2 million to Garza in punitive damages, $1 million in non-economic damages and $150,000 in economic damages.

The father of four said he plans on leaving Salem and begin a new mission to build churches.

The city of Salem said they are evaluating the jury’s decision and had no comment.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

Article Topic Follows: CNN - Regional

Jump to comments ↓

CNN Newsource

BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION

KTVZ NewsChannel 21 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation.

Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here

If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here.

Skip to content