Bodycam Shows Moment MMA Fighter Paralyzed During Arrest

• Report rights infringement
• published: 16 Jun 2016
• views: 2

Bodycam Shows Moment MMA Fighter Paralyzed During Arrest La Junta, CO - An aspiring MMA fighter from La Junta, who claims he was paralyzed after being arrested by the La Junta Police Department, has filed a lawsuit against the department and the arresting officer in the case. The video shows Donovan Duran hitting his back on the pavement outside the hospital after police officers got him out of the back of the car while handcuffed."The video shows how unjustly they did me that night," Duran said. "I couldn't finish it. It was too hard. Too much for me." The suit claims excessive force and brutality by officers of the department. This stems from the arrest of Donovan Duran, who was visibly intoxicated at the time and claims during the arrest that he was slammed to the ground, damaging his spinal cord. That injury resulted in his current paralysis. "Instead of walking I'd be running, I was a very active guy," he said. "My breast line down... I feel nothing. I have feeling sometimes, but I have no control over moving."Court documents say law enforcement were first called on Dec. 5, 2015 after Duran called 911 several times reporting someone was trying to enter his grandfather's home and that people were trying to kill him. At his request, an Otero County sheriff's deputy transported him to Rocky Ford and police there took him to his brother's home. While officers said he had been mouthing off and believed him to be under the influence of alcohol, they said Duran was for the most part cooperative.Later that night, La Junta police received a call from Duran's sister. The responding team knew Duran and believed he had issues with alcohol in the past and was "acting paranoid." Duran volunteered to be taken to the hospital by ambulance and was admitted.According to the suit, Duran later left the hospital without authorization and was contacted by police.