A former Denver jail captain testified Wednesday that she repeatedly moved a certain deputy to where she would have little contact with inmates because of her habit of inciting physical confrontations with them.
“There were times (Deputy Faun Gomez) would have an issue of escalating the situation,” former Denver Sheriff’s Capt. Cheryl Arabalo testified at a federal court trial.
The family of street preacher Marvin Booker filed a lawsuit against five jail deputies and the city of Denver, claiming their treatment of him led to his death July 9, 2010.
Several witnesses have testified during the past week and a half that Gomez grabbed Booker from behind after he ignored her repeated orders and went to get his shoes in a jail intake area.
The contact prompted Booker’s takedown, which involved five jail employees and led to the inmate’s death.
During her testimony Wednesday, Arabalo was asked by an attorney representing the city to describe circumstances that led to her own firing.
Arabalo said she had a spotless 19-year employment record until she filed a sexual harassment claim against a fellow supervisor who was later suspended for 75 days.
She said a grand jury and Denver internal police investigation did not result in any criminal charges.
She earlier testified that Gomez had a short fuse and her anger would provoke inmates into confrontations that required other deputies to physically restrain the offender. She said she would reassign Gomez to avoid such conflicts.
The city of Denver claims that chronic cocaine use by Booker compromised his health and that his own resistance to deputies led to his death.
The trial is expected to continue for another week and a half.
