LAS ANIMAS COUNTY, Colo. — Prosecutors have charged two now-former Las Animas County Sheriff's Office deputies after a Taser was used on a man who was handcuffed multiple times in November 2022.
Previously released body cam footage shows Henry Trujillo and Mikhail Noel using the Taser on Kenneth Espinoza multiple times during the Nov. 29, 2022 incident. It's unclear from the video whether one or both deputies tased Espinoza.
Both were fired in August 2023 after an investigation found their repeated use of Tasers against Espinoza, who was handcuffed, was unjustified. A report from the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office also recommended a criminal investigation into Noel and Trujillo.
It all began when Espinoza's son was pulled over for a traffic stop while his father was driving behind him. When Espinoza pulled off the road behind his son, Trujillo and Noel ordered him to leave.
After initially refusing, Espinoza started to drive away when the deputies ordered him to stay. Noel, who said Espinoza tried to strike him with his truck, then pointed his gun at Espinoza, according to the report. Espinoza was handcuffed, told he was under arrest, taken to the patrol car and stunned with a Taser, the report found.
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Noel and Trujillo said Noel was uncooperative, resisting and attempting to harm the deputies by kicking them. The investigation found Espinoza did not attempt to strike Noel with his truck and "at no time does Mr. Espinoza actively use any force against Lt. Trujillo or Dep. Noel."
In April, prosecutors charged both of them. Each is charged with:
- Third-degree assault
- Failure to intervene
- Official misconduct
- Official oppression
- Menacing
All of those charges are misdemeanors. Both are due in court on July 24.
In March, Espinoza's attorneys announced that a $1.5 million settlement had been reached in a federal lawsuit against Trujillo, Noel and others.
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