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(January 12) An off-duty Aurora police officer has been placed on immediate and indefinite suspension without pay following his arrest.

On January 11, 2023, at approximately 8:30 p.m., Aurora911 received a call about a physical fight in the 15900 block of East Briarwood Circle. Aurora police responded and learned one of the individuals involved was off-duty Aurora police officer Douglas Harroun. The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office was requested to respond to conduct the investigation.

The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office arrested Harroun, who was booked into the Arapahoe County Detention Center on felony charges.

The Aurora Police Department has opened an Internal Affairs investigation related to this incident. Harroun was placed on immediate and indefinite suspension without pay as outlined in city charter 3-16(8)(j).

“The alleged actions Wednesday night are inconsistent with the Aurora Police Department’s core values,” said Chief Art Acevedo. “We want to thank our partners at the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office’s for responding and taking the lead on the investigation.”

Harroun was hired in 2020. Before Wednesday night’s incident, he was involved in a non-fatal officer-involved shooting on December 31, 2022. Harroun was placed on paid administration leave following that incident.

As the investigating agency, any additional information about the arrest should be obtained from the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office.

Agent Matthew Longshore
Public Information Officer
Public Affairs Unit
720.432.5095
Posted by [email protected]  On Jan 12, 2023 at 12:52 PM
  
(October 1, 2020) Now that former Officer Levi Huffine's Civil Service Commission Disciplinary Appeal Hearing has concluded, the Aurora Police Department is releasing the body worn camera footage that was shown during the public hearing on Tuesday.  The video has been posted on the Aurora Police YouTube Channel and is included in this news release. 

Since this case has not been adjudicated by the commission, Chief Wilson nor the department will be commenting or providing interviews about this case or this weeks proceedings. 


Internal Affairs Investigation Summary of Evidence and Orders

Any media inquires regarding the hearing should to be sent to the City of Aurora Communications Department at [email protected].

Lieutenant Chris Amsler
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Unit
720.432.5095


Information Previously released on February 24, 2020:

(02-24-2020) Upon numerous requests, the officer who was terminated is Officer Levi Huffine. Officer Huffine began working at the Aurora Police Department in November of 2012. 

It should be noted that this incident is not related to the critical incident involved Mr. Elijah McClain nor the case of Nate Meier.

Officer Matthew Longshore
Aurora Police Department
Public Information Officer
720.432.5095


Information previously released ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
(02-24-2020) From the moment I took over as Aurora’s Interim Police Chief, I promised transparency to our residents to help build back the trust within our community. Continuing with that promise, I wanted to let you know of my decision today to terminate one of our police officers, over what I believe to be severe misconduct. This officer’s conduct was completely out of character with the mission, ideals, and expectations of the Aurora Police Department.

It should be noted that there were no serious injuries as a result of this incident but that neither excuses nor defends the officer’s actions.

Due to a pending appeals process that is given to civil service employees, I am unable to provide additional details or information about this incident until that process has been completed. At such time, I will make the body worn camera footage available and address questions from our community members.

Thank you,

Interim Chief Vanessa Wilson
Aurora Police Department
Posted by [email protected]  On Oct 01, 2020 at 6:44 PM
  
A message from Chief Wilson regarding the termination of an Aurora Police Officer:

"Today, I terminated the employment of Officer Joshua Teeples. Officer Teeples was arrested on August 27th, 2019, following an off-duty hit and run crash where he was also intoxicated. Officer Teeples was hired in June 2017.

Immediately following Officer Teeples arrest, he was placed on restricted duty while we conducted an IA investigation. At the conclusion of the Internal Affairs investigation, this case was sent to the Chiefs Review Board who recommended that he be terminated. Following the Chiefs Review Board’s recommendations, the case was sent to our Independent Review Board, comprised of community and sworn department members, who unanimously agreed on the termination decision.

After taking over as the Interim Police Chief, it has been my duty to rebuild the trust within our community and hold my officers accountable for their actions. The actions and decisions made by my officers, whether on-duty or off, always need to reflect the professionalism that APD, City Officials and the Aurora residents expect of them."


Officer Matthew Longshore
Public Information Officer
Aurora Police Department
720-432-5095
Posted by [email protected]  On Jun 15, 2020 at 4:15 PM
  
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE UNIT

The Aurora Police Department is one of only a very few major city agencies that does not have a dedicated unit focused on investigating and preventing domestic violence related crimes. Since his arrival in 2015, Chief Metz has been diligently working at trying to get funding and establish a domestic violence unit that can better serve the residents of Aurora.

Some of the reasonings that prompted Chief Metz and the Aurora PD to pursue creating a Domestic Violence Unit are:

• On average, APD responds to 6700 Domestic Violence related calls for service per year.

• Over the last 4 years, APD has responded to double the number of Domestic Violence (DV) incidents, and more than three times as many Felony DV Aggravated Assaults, as compared to prior years. Sadly, this has included several DV related murders over the last four years...including three in the last couple months. It is hoped that having a specialized process will give those who are victims of abuse the courage and confidence to report violence.

• Domestic Violence is one of the most underreported crimes. When a reported crime of an aggravated DV assault or murder occur, it is rare that it is the first-time violence has occurred in the home. Sadly, in many of those murder cases, it is believed the victim endured multiple unreported assaults by the suspect. Again, our goal would be to help give victims the courage to report and follow-through to prosecution, thus minimizing repeat calls and escalation of violence.

• Domestic violence crosses all economic, racial, sexual orientation, and cultural categories. It is often a cyclical crime that if not addressed appropriately can repeat itself at the hands of children who witness such ongoing violence in their own families.

• Domestic violence calls are one of the leading causes of assaults and murders against law enforcement officers throughout the country. In fact, since the beginning of the year, five officers around the country were murdered responding to DV / familial related calls. The number of officers seriously wounded while responding to DV related calls, as well as OIS incidents is staggering. Such an incident involved one of our own last year.

• A specialized DV unit would be able to help identify those addresses that patrol officers should approach with extreme caution based on information that may come out post-patrol response. And again, hopefully reduce repeat incidents and escalation.

We want to ensure that APD is doing everything it can to truly serve and protect victims of family violence. The goal will be to have the DV Unit fully functional and operational no later than January 1, 2021. In the meantime, patrol officers and district detectives will continue to respond and investigate these crimes. If you are, or know someone that is, a victim of domestic violence, we are here to help and have resources that we can provide. You can reach out Dispatch Center at 303-627-3100 or by calling 911. You can also follow this link for a list of resources that are available: http://bit.ly/2lvcip3


Posted by [email protected]  On Oct 31, 2019 at 7:38 AM